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Corporate Governance and Access to Finance - ESBG

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARYBackground <strong>and</strong> objectives of the studynnn<strong>Access</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Finance</strong> is an important objective for WSBI members, in thecontext of their “double bot<strong>to</strong>m line” banking approach, according <strong>to</strong>which they seek (i) <strong>to</strong> bring a return <strong>to</strong> the communities where theyoperate, including by offering financial services <strong>to</strong> underservedsegments of the population <strong>and</strong> at the same time (ii) <strong>to</strong> make areasonable profit that ensures the sustainability of the institution.WSBI members foster <strong>Access</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Finance</strong> from a multi-facetedperspective:• in a geographical dimension, by providing financial products <strong>to</strong>underserved population in rural <strong>and</strong> remote areas;• in a product dimension, by offering accessible <strong>and</strong> affordableservices, adapted <strong>to</strong> the specific needs of low income population;• <strong>and</strong> in a time dimension, by maintaining a more permanentrelationship with clients <strong>and</strong> following more stable policies in thegood <strong>and</strong> bad times, thus being less pro-cyclical than the averagebanking institution.The first two features contribute <strong>to</strong> the objective of financial inclusion,<strong>and</strong> the third one both <strong>to</strong> financial inclusion <strong>and</strong> financial stability.At the same time, WSBI members follow <strong>Corporate</strong> <strong>Governance</strong>st<strong>and</strong>ards set by international bodies or institutions or by nationalregula<strong>to</strong>rs, which is a condition for WSBI membership. According <strong>to</strong> asurvey developed for this study, 87% of members have an internal<strong>Corporate</strong> <strong>Governance</strong> code.9

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