Nepal has a unique geography consisting of mountains, hills and Terai, which makes it difficult for any financial institution to provide financial services to every part of the country. Formal and informal financial service providers have been attempting to reach more customers at various levels and provide them with a range of financial services. Various studies have shown that people have become aware of different types of financial services, which suggests that people use them more now than they did in the past. This research was an attempt to take a deeper look at people’s experience of existing financial services and their providers. In addition, it aimed to identify definitive indicators that would help to create a road map for the delivery of effective financial services in Nepal. The research covered 25 districts spread over fie development regions. During the research, the team spoke to 1,019 respondents and tried to understand their perspectives on existing financial services using six different qualitative research tools: focus-group discussions, life cycle analysis, financial sector trend analysis, seasonality analysis, product attribute ranking and relative preference ranking. Financial service providers in Nepal include formal entities such as banks, micro fiance institutions and co-operatives, as well as informal entities such as moneylenders, unofficial groups and friends. This research clearly indicated that preference for formal financial service providers has grown in the last 10 years, while the use of informal financial service providers such as moneylenders, relatives, friends and Dhukuti groups has decreased. Interestingly, the use of informal groups to meet financial needs (i.e., women’s, mothers’ and sisters’ groups) has increased in the past 10 years. Research also highlighted seasonal patterns of income, expenditure, credit and savings of respondents, and the underlying reasons for peaks and troughs. Another aspect of the research was meant to capture the attributes respondents sought when choosing financial service providers. Two key attributes were trustworthiness and ease of access. Research also identified the service providers that people preferred because of the attributes those service providers embodied. Respondents rated banks, micro finance institutions, co-operatives and informal groups, amongst others, on various attributes that were important to them.
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Publisher:
MM4P, UNCDF
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(2014
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Type / Script:
Progress Report
in English
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Keywords:
MOBILE MONEY FOR THE POOR (MM4P), FINANCIAL INSTITUTION, FINANCIAL SERVICES, DEVELOPMENT REGIONS, FINANCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS, INCOME, EXPENDITURE, MICRO FINANCE, NEED-BASED PRODUCTS, , FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, FINANCIAL PRODUCTS, DEVELOPING MECHANISM, MONEYLENDERS, INSURANCE COMPANIES, REMITTANCE COMPANIES, CO-OPERATIVES, FINANCE COMPANIES, SAVINGS, CREDIT, FINANCIAL STATUS, FINANCIAL NEEDS, CHILDREN’S EDUCATION, MARRIAGE, TRUSTWORTHINESS, FINANCIAL LITERACY, GENDER
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Thematic Group:
UNCDF
:
Capital Development
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Thesaurus:
02.11.00
- Banking And Investment
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Reference Link:
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