Financial Exclusion

Santiago Carbó, Edward Gardner and Philip Molyneux 
Palgrave Macmillan
Series: Palgrave Macmillan Studies in Banking and Financial Institutions 
11 May 2005        |        £66.00        |        Hardback                  
9781403990518        |        200 pages 

Description
This text is concerned with the increasingly important and problematic area of financial exclusion, broadly defined as the inability and/or reluctance of particular societal groups to access mainstream financial services. This has emerged as a major international policy issue. There is growing evidence that deregulation in developed financial sectors improves financial inclusion for some societal groups (more products become available to a bigger customer base), but may at the same time exacerbate it for others (for example, by emphasizing greater customer segmentation and more emphasis on risk-based pricing and 'value added'). In developing countries access to financial services is typically limited and therefore providing wider access to such services can aid financial and economic development.
This is the first text to analyze financial exclusion issues in different parts of the world and it covers the various public and private sector mechanisms that have been advanced to help eradicate this problem.

Authors
SANTIAGO CARBÓ is Professor of Economics at the University of Granada, Spain. He is also the Head of Research on Financial Systems at the Savings Banks Foundations (Funcas) in Spain. He has published over 80 articles, monographs and book chapters on banking and the role of the financial system in the economy and society.

EDWARD GARDNER is Professor of Banking and Finance, Director of the School for Business and Regional Development and Co-Director of the Institute of European Finance at the University of Wales, Bangor, UK. He is also the Bank of Valleta Chair in International Banking and Finance at the University of Malta.

PHILIP MOLYNEUX is Professor in Banking and Finance at the University of Wales, Bangor, UK, and at Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. He has published widely in the banking and finance area. His recent books include Private Banking, Financial Innovation, European Banking: Efficiency, Growth and Technology, Banking and Financial Systems in the Arab World (with Munawar Iqbal) and Thirty Years of Islamic Banking (with Munawar Iqbal).

Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
Glossary of Acronyms
PART 1: INTRODUCTION
Aims and Objectives
PART 2: NATURE, CONSEQUENCES AND POLICY REACTIONS: AN OVERVIEW
Introduction
Nature and Causes
The Financially Excluded
Consequences of Financial Exclusion
US Experiences
Responding to Financial Exclusion
Conclusions
PART 3: UK EXPERIENCES
Introduction
Financial Exclusion in the UK and the Nature of Excluded Groups
Background and Types of Indicators
Why is Financial Exclusion Occurring in the UK?
Excluded Groups and Products
Barriers to Financial Inclusion
Consequences of Financial Exclusion
PART 4: TACKLING FINANCIAL EXCLUSION IN THE UK
Introduction
Government and Financial Sector Partnership
Universal Banking and Basic Banking Services
Promoting Financial Literacy and Closing the Information Gap
Tailoring Products and Strategies
Other Institutional Arrangements
SMEs and Micro Credit (Microfinance)
Regulation and Financial Exclusion
Conclusions
PART 5: FINANCIAL EXCLUSION IN THE US
Introduction
Nature and Extent of the Problem
Causes and Consequences
Repsonses to Financial Exclusion in the US
A Note on Select Bank Trends and Development
Conclusion: Bank Strategic Implications
PART 6: FINANCIAL EXCLUSION IN EUROPE
Introduction
Policy and Strategic Context
Select Comparative Data
Responding to Financial Exclusion in Europe
Market: Spain, Greece, Ireland and Italy
Voluntary Role of Banks: France, Germany and Belgium
Government as Mediator: The UK and the Attempt in France
Government as Legislator: France, Portugal and Sweden
Conclusions
PART 7: EUROPEAN POLICY ON FINANCIAL EXCLUSION AND BANK STRATEGIES
Introduction
Market Context and European Policy Responses
Historical and Institutional Settings
Policy Responses to Financial Exclusion
Bank Strategies and Products
The Contribution to Economic Theory
Conclusion
PART 8: FINANCIAL EXCLUSION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Introduction
Features of Financial Exclusion in Developing Countries
Rural Economies and Financial Underdevelopment
Exclusion and Financial Development
Financial Underdevelopment and the Finance-growth nexus
Financial Development is Pro-poor
Mechanisms of Financial Inclusiuon in Developing Countries: Informal Financial Networks and Microfinance
Rotating Saving and Credit Associations (ROSCAs)
The Microfinance Revolution
A Note on the Microfinance Experience in Bolivia
Development of Formal Intermediaries: Some Policy Lessons
Conclusions
PART 9: FINANCIAL EXCLUSION - AREAS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Introduction
Areas for Further Study
References