Access to finance : mind the gender gap

الملخص EN

-Studies on financial inclusion have so far focused on assessing determinants to overall access to finance, but limited attention has been given to financial inclusion from a gender point of view, and on the gaps that separate females and males with regards to their access to the opportunities and services provided by the financial sector.

We construct a database combining information from bank-level data with other variables reflecting the macro and regulatory framework across countries, as well as variables reflecting labour market female participation and gender disparities in access to property.

A weighted least squares analysis is used to identify the impact of banking sector ownership structure and concentration, and of the regulatory and institutional framework on the gender gaps in selected indicators of financial access.

We also assess whether these characteristics have the same effect on the overall level of access to finance