This Policy Note focuses on distribution channels, the role they play in product diversification and costs, and how regulation can promote competition in mutual funds (MFs) distribution. In many emerging market economics (EMEs) where both the capital markets and the MFs have reached certain...

This World Bank publication provides an overview of mutual funds in developing countries, outlining their role in the financial sector; the different types of mutual funds; the structure of the mutual fund industry; and the industry's interdependency with other sectors such as pension funds and...

This engagement note provides a snapshot of financial development in the countries of the GulfCooperation Council (GCC), Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and identifies key areas of the financial sector reform agenda where the World Bank Group (WBG)...

The Libya Financial Sector Review represents a snapshot review of the Libyan financial sector which is based on a fact-finding mission to Tripoli, Libya, in January 2019, discussions with leading participants in the financial sector, and desk research. The report is based on the limited...

This report presents an analysis conducted by the World Bank to assess macro-fiscal impacts of earthquakes and floods in European Union (EU) Member States (MS), analyze the financial instruments in place to manage this risk and identify any associated funding gaps. The analysis is underpinned by...

The South African financial system has weathered the shock of COVID-19 but faces growing risks emanating from a weak macroeconomic outlook. The pandemic crisis hit South Africa hard, with nonresident capital outflows accelerating and the domestic and global slowdown precipitating a6.4 percent...

State-owned financial institutions (SOFIs) and broader interventions by the state need to play a more prominent role in supporting financial inclusion, green activities and fostering competition among private financial providers. While SOFIs have been generally perceived as complementary to the...

This paper analyzes the performance and development of the Mexican pension annuity market in Mexico that stemmed from the 1997 pension reform. The Mexican experience displays interesting characteristics that provide lessons for other countries that still need to design the decumulation phase of...