This paper marshals substantial arguments and data to support the contention that improving the access of micro and small enterprises to financial services could have an important salutary impact on a country's income distribution. To demonstrate this, the paper shows first that many poor own or...

This paper presents a synopsis of the current state of the microfinance industry in Latin America. It provides a rough assessment of the achievement and outreach of the industry; it offers revealing information on the financial performance of 20 microfinance institutions; and it outlines some of...

The 1992 "Single Market" failed to create a real single market for financial services across Europe. However, the boom in bond issuance (stimulated by EMU) and the coincidental equity issuance boom have both led to dramatic changes in the infrastructure of financial markets. So, the EU is well...

This study was prepared for the Financial Services and Poverty Reduction research project and was presented at the conference with the same name held at Bank headquarters in September of 2004. It first establishes the considerable welfare cost borne by the region's poor when facing uncovered...

This paper assesses the impact of the Liquidity Program for Growth Sustainability (LPGS) on Latin America and the Caribbean, instrumented by the IDB to confront the regional spillovers of the subprime crisis. This emergency liquidity line was set up to boost productive loans of commercial banks,...

The purpose of this paper, the fourth chapter in a series of discussion papers on private sector development, is to examine issues that are central to financial market development in the Caribbean region. This report identifies factors that are required for financial markets to function...

This paper represents one of the first comparative analyses of experiences of integrated supervision. It discusses how several countries around the world have developed the processes of integrating financial regulation and supervision, and covers numerous relevant technical issues as well as the...

This study analyses the opportunities and challenges presented by agricultural insurance instruments in the deepening of financial services in rural areas in Mesoamerica. It outlines a public policy framework to guide the decision-making process. It concludes that, in order to support the...

The purpose of this paper is to provide Bank staff interested in agricultural yield insurance market development, public officials responsible for financial market policy formulation and supervision, and insurance industry practitioners in Latin America and the Caribbean with a basic primer on...

This presentation was commissioned by the Trade and Integration Network of the Regional Policy Dialogue for the 5th Hemispheric Meeting celebrated on August 14 and 15, 2003. This paper presents principles and a methodology that may contribute to improve the preparation of Financial Services...