Digital Payments and Financial Inclusion: The Case of Mobile Money, Financial Inclusion, and Access to Bank Loans in Kenya
Mobile money comes in the form of a mobile application installed on a mobile phone allowing the use of mobile phones for payment, remittances and other financial services, impacting positively financial inclusion of the unbanked population. This research aims to examine the causal relationships between mobile money, financial inclusion and access to formal banking services and specially loans in Kenya. The analysis focuses on four key indicators of mobile money in Kenya that provide insights into both the availability and usage of mobile money services across the country: Active Accounts for 90 Days, Global Transactions, Registered Accounts, and Registered Agents. We anticipate showing that the innovation of mobile money has had a positive and statistically significant causal impact on the levels of financial inclusion in Kenya, both as captured through the heightened usage of formal financial services and the lowering of geographic and socioeconomic access barriers.