This paper analyzes the bright and dark sides of the financial development process through the lenses of the four fundamental frictions to which agents are exposed-information asymmetry, enforcement, collective action, and collective cognition. Financial development is shaped by the efforts of...

Interest in access to finance has increased significantly in recent years, as growing evidence suggests that lack of access to credit prevents lower-income households and small firms from financing high return investment projects, having an adverse effect on growth and poverty alleviation. This...

In this study, the authors analyze where we stand and where we are heading on capital market development. More specifically, this study has three main goals. First, the authors take stock of the state and evolution of Latin American capital markets and related reforms, over time and relative to...