The current debate on financial inclusion pays little attention to whether financial inclusion is pro-cyclical with the fluctuating business cycle. This article investigates the relationship between financial inclusion and the business cycle. The findings reveal that the level of savings and the...

This article offers a number of policy solutions to improve financial inclusion during the COVID-19 crisis. COVID-19 is a global health crisis to which some of the usual global solutions like greater financial inclusion can help. Financial inclusion remains a powerful development tool to improve...

This article presents some criticisms of financial inclusion. It notes that (i) financial inclusion is an invitation to live by finance and leads to the financialisation of poverty; (ii) some of the benefits of financial inclusion disappears after a few years; (iii) financial inclusion ignores...

This article analyse several indicators of financial inclusion in Nigeria. The findings reveal that people with at least a secondary education and unemployed people had higher levels of debit card ownership, higher levels of account ownership of any type, and higher levels of account ownership...

This article examines various conditions for optimality in financial inclusion. The optimal level of financial inclusion is achieved when basic financial services are provided to members of the population at a price that is affordable and that price is also economically sufficient to encourage...

This article presents several theories of financial inclusion. Financial inclusion is the ease of access to, and the availability of, basic financial services to all members of the population. Financial inclusion means that individuals and businesses have access to useful and affordable...

This article provides a discussion on some issues associated with digital finance – an area which has not been critically addressed in the literature. Digital finance and financial inclusion has several benefits to financial services users, digital finance providers, governments and the...

This paper examines whether African banks audited by a Big 4 auditor use loan loss provisions for earnings management purposes before, during and after the global financial crisis. It focuses on income smoothing as a type of earnings management. Using bank data from 21 African countries from...

Achieving high levels of financial inclusion has been a policy priority for policy makers in many countries as policy makers seek to reduce the level of financial exclusion to low levels. There have also been increased interest in financial inclusion research by academics. The literature lacks a...

This paper examines whether high levels of financial inclusion is associated with greater financial risk. The findings reveal that higher account ownership is associated with greater financial risk through high nonperforming loan and high cost inefficiency in the financial sector of developed...