Access to financial services in Nepal

Over the past 20 years Nepal's financial sector has become deeper and the number and type of financial intermediaries have grown rapidly. Recent reforms have also made the banking sector more stable. Still, access to financial services remains limited for many people in Nepal, and has even been declining in recent years. This book examines the country's supply of and demand for financial services and the constraints to increasing access to them. It offers recommendations on how to make the financial sector work for all of Nepal's people, and especially for low-income households and small businesses. It presents the results of an access to financial services survey administered to Nepali households in 2005 and explains what hinders access by low income households and small businesses to financial institutions. The obstacles are identified on the basis of an in-depth analysis of the performance of the microfinance sector and of selected banks.