In the past thirty years the financial sector has seen unparalleled growth and has exerted increased economic and political influence and significance. This growth has come hand-in-hand with several serious economic crises and greater monetary instability. Set against this background, this...

1. General introduction -- 2. A critical review of the literature on credit rationing -- 3. The theory of credit rationing revisited -- 4. Financial liberalization -- 5. Intervention I : the South Korean experience -- 6. Intervention II : the Indian experience -- 7. Concluding remarks.