Financial Access 2010

September, 2010    

Financial Access 2010 is the second in the series of annual reports by CGAP and the World Bank Group to monitor statistics for financial access in the world and inform policy debate. The series was launched in response to the increasing interest in financial inclusion among policy makers and the development community. The first report, Financial Access 2009, introduced statistics on the use of financial services in 139 economies and mapped a broad range of policies and initiatives supporting financial inclusion.

Financial Access 2010 extends to 142 countries, and builds on last year’s data to update the statistics on the use of financial services, and analyzes changes that took place in 2009―a turbulent year for the financial sector in the majority of economies around the world. In addition to measuring the state of financial access, Financial Access 2010 expands on last year’s work by reviewing three policy areas relevant to the current financial access debate: financial inclusion mandates, consumer protection in financial services, and access to finance by SMEs.