cam a22 2 4500 467967156 CHVBK 20200107120318.0 cr ||||||||||| 170327s2017 xxu||||||---- 00 |eng-d (OCoLC)979541825 (IDSSG)000917572 SzZuIDS HSG ger rda Bachas Pierre Verfasser aut Banking on Trust How Debit Cards Enable the Poor to Save More Pierre Bachas, Paul Gertler, Sean Higgins, Enrique Seira Cambridge, MA National Bureau of Economic Research 2017 1 Online-Ressource Text txt rdacontent/ger Computermedien c rdamedia/ger Online-Ressource cr rdacarrier/ger NBER working paper series 23252 23252 (IDSSG)000043070 523018967 Trust is an essential element of economic transactions, but trust in financial institutions is low, especially among the poor. Debit cards provide not only easier access to savings, but also a mechanism to monitor bank account balances and thereby build trust in a financial institution. We study a natural experiment in which debit cards are rolled out to beneficiaries of a Mexican conditional cash transfer program whose benefits are already directly deposited into a savings account. Using administrative data on over 340,000 bank accounts over four years, we find that prior to receiving a debit card, beneficiaries do not save in these accounts. Beneficiaries then begin to increase their savings after 9 to 12 months with the card. During this initial stagnant period, they use the card to check their balances frequently, and the number of checks decreases over time as their reported trust in the bank increases. After 1 to 2 years, the debit card causes the savings rate to increase by 3 to 5 percent of income. Using household survey panel data, we find that this effect represents an increase in overall savings. Gertler Paul Verfasser aut Higgins Sean Verfasser aut Seira Enrique Verfasser aut http://www.nber.org/papers/w23252 Full text for the University of St. Gallen noalma ids I IDSSG 100 1- Bachas Pierre Verfasser aut IDSSG 490 0- NBER working paper series 23252 23252 (IDSSG)000043070 523018967 IDSSG 700 1- Gertler Paul Verfasser aut IDSSG 700 1- Higgins Sean Verfasser aut IDSSG 700 1- Seira Enrique Verfasser aut IDSSG 856 -- http://www.nber.org/papers/w23252 Full text for the University of St. Gallen BK020053 XK020053 XK020000 IDSSG HSG HSG ONL HONL000917572