ISSN 2306-546X e-ISSN 2414-3774 UDC 37
Submit an article

University Economic Bulletin

Article

Banking on equality: Closing the gender divide in Latin America's financial systems

Biliqees Ayoola Abdulmumin
Retrieved from Vol. 20, No. 2, 2025 Pages 67–77
Received
04.08.2025
Revised
28.11.2025
Accepted
24.12.2025
Published
26.12.2025
Views
205

Abstract

Financial inclusion has emerged as a pivotal strategy for promoting inclusive economic growth, reducing poverty, and fostering social equity everywhere in the world. However, significant gender disparities persist in Latin America, where millions of women remain excluded from formal financial systems. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of gender disparities in financial access on overall financial inclusion in Latin American countries using panel data spanning 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021 from the World Bank's global financial development database. Descriptive analysis revealed persistent gender gaps in financial access, with male populations consistently outperforming their female counterparts in account ownership, savings, credit, and credit/debit card usage. Among the countries studied, Costa Rica and Ecuador exhibited relatively wider gaps, while Uruguay showed more gender parity across indicators. Correlation analysis showed a significant negative relationship between the financial inclusion index and account ownership gap and the debit/credit card gap, suggesting that gender disparity in these areas is associated with lower overall financial inclusion. Results from the random effects panel regression model showed that account ownership gap (β = -6.283, p > 0.05), savings gap (β = -3.193, p > 0.05), credit gap (β = 0.1337, p > 0.05), and debit/credit card gap (β = 2.6216, p > 0.05) had insignificant effects on financial inclusion in the Latin American region. The results of this study can be utilised by policymakers, financial institutions, and international organisations in Latin America to develop targeted strategies aimed at reducing gender gaps in access to financial services and enhancing overall financial inclusion

Keywords

financial inclusion; gender disparities; account ownership gap; panel data; financial services

References

  1. Akhter, J., & Cheng, K. (2020). Sustainable empowerment initiatives among rural women through microcredit borrowings in Bangladesh. Sustainability, 12(6), article number 2275. doi: 10.3390/su12062275.
  2. Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI). (2024). Gender inclusive finance roadmap for the Latin America and Caribbean region. Retrieved from https://www.findevgateway.org/paper/2024/05/gender-inclusive-finance-roadmap-for-latin-america-and-caribbean-region.
  3. Ansar, S., Klapper, L., & Singer, D. (2023). The importance of financial education for the effective use of formal financial services (Policy research working paper No. 10345). Washington: World Bank Group.
  4. Balasubramanian, S.A., Kuppusamy, T., & Natarajan, T. (2018). Financial inclusion and land ownership status of women. International Journal of Development Issues, 18(1), 51-69. doi: 10.1108/IJDI-06-2018-0091.  
  5. Benería, L., Berik, G., & Floro, M. (2015). Gender, development, and globalization: Economics as if all people mattered. New York: Routledge.
  6. Demirguc-Kunt, A., Ansar, S., Klapper, L., & Singer, D. (2022). The global findex database 2021: Financial inclusion, digital payments, and resilience in the age of COVID-19. Washington: World Bank Group.
  7. Desalegn, G., & Yemataw, G. (2017). Financial inclusion in Ethiopia: Using LSMS (Ethiopia socioeconomic survey) data. Ethiopian Journal of Economics, 26(2), 31-58. doi: 10.4314/eje.v26i2.
  8. Folbre, N. (1994). Who pays for the kids? Gender and the structures of constraint. London: Routledge.
  9. Fowowe, B. (2023). Financial inclusion, gender gaps and agricultural productivity in Mali. Review of Development Economics, 29(1), 3-42. doi: 10.1111/rode.13034.
  10. Galindo-Manrique, A.F., & Rojas-Vargas, N.P. (2025). The role of digital financial services in narrowing the gender gap in low-middle-income economies: A Bayesian machine learning approach. Risks, 13(5), article number 96. doi: 10.3390/risks13050096.
  11. Harijan, M., & Kumari, D.S.S. (2025). Digital financial inclusion in India: Evidence for gender disparities. Aarthika Charche FPI Journal of Economics & Governance, 9(2), 64-80.
  12. Hundie, S.K., & Tulu, D.T. (2023). Determinants of financial inclusion gender gap in Ethiopia: Evidence from decomposition analysis. Cogent Business & Management, 10(2), article number 2238124. doi: 10.1080/23311975.2023.2238124.  
  13. Johnen, C., & Mußhoff, O. (2022). Digital credit and the gender gap in financial inclusion: Empirical evidence from Kenya. Journal of International Development, 35, 272-295. doi: 10.1002/jid.3687.  
  14. Kara, A., Zhou, H., & Zhou, Y. (2021). Achieving the United Nations’ sustainable development goals through financial inclusion: A systematic literature review of access to finance across the globe. International Review of Financial Analysis, 77, article number 101833. doi: 10.1016/j.irfa.2021.101833.
  15. Kowsick, N.P., & Ramasamy, K. (2024). Gender and financial inclusion – a review of existing literature. ShodhKosh: Journal of Visual and Performing Arts, 5(6), 1550-1558. doi: 10.29121/shodhkosh.v5.i6.2024.1988.
  16. Ndoya, H., Tsala, C., & Kamguia, B. (2024). What drive financial inclusion gender gap in Cameroon? A Fairlie decomposition approach. Bulletin of Economic Research, 77(6), 822-838. doi: 10.1111/boer.12447.
  17. Ndoya, H.H., & Tsala, C.O. (2021). What drives the gender gap in financial inclusion? Evidence from Cameroon. African Development Review, 33(4), 674-687. doi: 10.1111/1467-8268.12608.
  18. Neaime, S., & Gaysset, I. (2018). Financial inclusion and stability in MENA: Evidence from poverty and inequality. Finance Research Letters, 24, 230-237. doi: 10.1016/j.frl.2017.09.007.
  19. Okello, A.O. (2025). Gender gaps, financial inclusion and social integration in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya. Economies, 13(3), article number 75. doi: 10.3390/economies13030075.
  20. Olaoye, O.O., Zerihun, M.F., Shaddady, A., & Tabash, M.I. (2024). FinTech – a pathway to financial inclusion? Evidence from Southern African development community member states. African Development Review, 36(2), 252-265. doi: 10.1111/1467-8268.12754.
  21. Ozili, P.K. (2022). Financial inclusion and sustainable development: An empirical association. Journal of Money and Business, 2(2), 186-198. doi: 10.1108/JMB-03-2022-0019.
  22. Peter, S., Elangovan, G., & Gupta, A. (2025). Digital engagement in financial inclusion for bridging the gendered entrepreneurial financial gap: Evidence from India. Cogent Business & Management, 12(1), article number 2518492. doi: 10.1080/23311975.2025.2518492.
  23. Raffaelli, P., Correa-García, J.A., & Verón, C.S. (2025). Financial inclusion and fintech: Catalysts for the sustainable development goals in Latin America. Retos: Journal of Administrative and Economic Sciences, 15(29), 47-63. doi: 10.17163/ret.n29.2025.03.
  24. Sen, A. (1995). Gender inequality and theories of justice. In M.C. Nussbaum & J. Glover (Eds.), Women, culture and development: A study of human capabilities (pp. 259-273). Oxford: Clarendon Press.
  25. Shaikh, A.A., Glavee-Geo, R., Karjaluoto, H., & Hinson, R.E. (2023). Mobile money as a driver of digital financial inclusion. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 186, article number 122158. doi: 10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122158.
  26. Sharif, S.P., Naghavi, N., Waheed, H., & Ehigiamusoe, K.U. (2022). The role of education in filling the gender gap in financial inclusion in low-income economies. International Journal of Emerging Markets, 18(12), 5755-5777. doi: 10.1108/ijoem-07-2021-0991.
  27. Vyhovska, N., Ortina, G., Iierusalymov, V., Diachek, S., & Lytvynchuk, I. (2024). Gender budgeting in Ukraine: Tools, financial security and gender equality in economic sectors. Scientific Bulletin of Mukachevo State University. Series “Economics”, 11(2), 18-29. doi: 10.52566/msu-econ2.2024.18.
  28. Wagbafor, M.O., Adenegan, K.O., Oladokun, Y.O.M., & Olasehinde, T. (2021). Financial inclusion in Nigeria: A gender gap approach. Macro Management & Public Policies, 3(3), 1-9. doi: 10.30564/mmpp.v3i3.3546.

Suggested citation

Abdulmumin, B.A. (2025). Banking on equality: Closing the gender divide in Latin America's financial systems. University Economic Bulletin, 20(2), 67-77. https://doi.org/10.69587/ueb/2.2025.67