Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to estimate the impact of Crediamigo Microcredit Program in Brazil on the financial situation of its recipients and investigate potential gender differences.

Study design: We use secondary data from the socioeconomic registry of Crediamigo, considering the active clients of the Program until 2021. Our identification strategy consists of using the Difference-in-Differences method.

Findings: The findings indicate that sustained participation in the program results in an average increase in operating profit, non-operating revenue, and payment capacity. Despite less favorable initial conditions and a lower average loan value, women experience significantly greater impacts.

Contributions: The main contribution focuses on using unique characteristics of Crediamigo to understand gender differences in financial performance.

Implications: By showcasing the benefits for female entrepreneurs, the findings offer valuable insights for more targeted financial initiatives and policies that bridge gender gaps and better serve female entrepreneurs.

Keywords

microcredit microenterprises female empowerment Brazil G21 J16 N26

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Agier

Szafarz

(2013). Microfinance and gender: Is there a glass ceiling on loan size? World Development, 42(1), 165–181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2012.06.016

Armendáriz

Morduch

(2010). The economics of microfinance (2nd ed.). MIT Press.

Ashenfelter

Card

(1985). Using the longitudinal structure of earnings to estimate the effect of training programs. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 67(4), 648. https://doi.org/10.2307/1924810

Bateman

(2010). Why doesn’t microfinance work? The destructive rise of local neoliberalism. Zed Books.

Bellucci

Borisov

Zazzaro

(2010). Does gender matter in bank-firm relationships? Evidence from small business lending. Journal of Banking & Finance, 34(12), 2968–2984. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2010.07.008

Benería

Berik

Floro

(2015). Gender, development and globalization: Economics as if all people mattered (2nd ed.). Routledge.

Brana

(2013). Microcredit: An answer to the gender problem in funding? Small Business Economics, 40(1), 87–100. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-011-9346-3

Buchmann

Neri

(2008). O Grameen Brasileiro: Avaliação do desempenho Econômico dos clientes do crediamigo. Fundação Getúlio Vargas.

Card

Krueger

A. B.

(1994). Minimum wages and employment: A case study of the fast-food industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The American Economic Review, 84(4), 772–793. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.90.5.1397

10.

Chen

Lai

(2017). Gender discrimination in online peer-to-peer credit lending: Evidence from a lending platform in China. Electronic Commerce Research, 17(4), 553–583. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10660-016-9247-2

11.

Corsi

De Angelis

(2017). Gender discrimination in microfinance? Some evidence from Uganda. Journal of Development Studies, 53(5), 723–740. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2016.1205733

12.

Cozarenco

Szafarz

(2018a). Gender biases in bank lending: Lessons from microcredit in France. Journal of Business Ethics, 147(3), 631–650. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2948-y

13.

Cozarenco

Szafarz

(2018b). Gender biases in bank lending: Lessons from microcredit in France. Journal of Business Ethics, 147(3), 631–650. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2948-y

14.

Cunha Júnior

J. M.

Oliveira

Melo

M. R.

Valente Junior

Viana

L. F.

(2024). Impactos socioeconômicos do Crediamigo: novas nerspectivas a partir da função dose-reposta. Revista Economica do Nordeste, 55(4), 42–62. https://doi.org/10.61673/ren.2024.1577

15.

Duflo

(2012). Women empowerment and economic development. Journal of Economic Literature, 50(4), 1051–1079. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.50.4.1051

16.

Duvendack

Palmer-Jones

(2017). Micro-finance, women’s empowerment and fertility decline in Bangladesh: How important was women’s agency? Journal of Development Studies, 53(5), 664–683. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2016.1205731

17.

Ferber

Nelson

(2003). Feminist economics today: Beyond economic man. University of Chicago Press.

18.

Fischer

E. M.

Reuber

A. R.

Dyke

L. S.

(1993). A theoretical overview and extension of research on sex, gender and entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 8(2), 151–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/0883-9026(93)90017-y

19.

Fletschner

(2009). Rural women’s access to credit: Market imperfections and intrahousehold dynamics. World Development, 37(3), 618–631. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2008.08.005

20.

Folbre

(2006). Measuring care: Gender, empowerment, and the care economy. Journal of Human Development, 7(2), 183–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649880600768512

21.

Goetz

A. M.

Gupta

R. S.

(1996). Who takes the credit? Gender, power, and control over loan use in rural credit programs in Bangladesh. World Development, 24(1), 45–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750x(95)00124-u

22.

Goldszmidt

Behr

Zucco

Lenz

A. K.

Gonzalez

Valdivia

(2022). Microcredit impacts: Evidence from a large-scale observational study in Brazil. European Journal of Development Research, 34(4), 1940–1966. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41287-021-00448-3

23.

Hashemi

S. M.

Schuler

S. R.

Riley

A. P.

(1996). Rural Credit programs and women’s empowerment in Bangladesh. World Development, 24(4), 635–653. https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-750x(95)00159-a

24.

Hill

F. M.

Leitch

C. M.

Harrison

R. T.

(2006). “Desperately seeking finance?” The demand for finance by women-owned and -led businesses. Venture Capital, 8(2), 159–182. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691060600555347

25.

Islam

Pakrashi

(2020). Labour market participation of women in rural Bangladesh: The role of microfinance. Journal of Development Studies, 56(10), 1927–1946. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2020.1725482

26.

Kabeer

(2001). Conflicts over credit: Re-evaluating the empowerment potential of loans to women in rural Bangladesh. World Development, 29(1), 63–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0305-750x(00)00081-4. https://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev

27.

Kabeer

(2017). Economic pathways to women’s empowerment and active citizenship: What does the evidence from Bangladesh tell us? Journal of Development Studies, 53(5), 649–663. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2016.1205730

28.

Kwong

Jones-Evans

Thompson

(2012). Differences in perceptions of access to finance between potential male and female entrepreneurs: Evidence from the UK. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 18(1), 75–97. https://doi.org/10.1108/13552551211201385

29.

Malmström

Burkhard

Sirén

Shepherd

Wincent

(2024). A meta-analysis of the impact of entrepreneurs’ gender on their access to bank finance. Journal of Business Ethics, 192(4), 803–820. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-023-05542-6

30.

Mayoux

(2001). Tackling the down side: Social capital, women’s empowerment and micro-finance in Cameroon. Development and Change, 32(3), 435–464. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-7660.00212

31.

Mendonça

K. V.

Soares

R. B.

(2016). Trajetória de crescimento para microempreendedores: Diferencial de gênero dos clientes do programa crediamigo. Estudos Economicos, 46(3), 701–731. https://doi.org/10.1590/0101-416146373kvr

32.

Morduch

(1999). The microfinance promise. Journal of Economic Literature, 37(4), 1569–1614. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.37.4.1569. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2565486

33.

Pitt

M. M.

Khandker

S. R.

(1998). The impact of group-based credit programs on poor households in Bangladesh: Does the gender of participants matter? Journal of Political Economy, 106(5), 958–996. https://doi.org/10.1086/250037. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/t-and-c

34.

Pitt

M. M.

Khandker

S. R.

Cartwright

(2006). Empowering women with micro finance: Evidence from Bangladesh. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 54(4), 791–831. https://doi.org/10.1086/503580

35.

Rahman

(1999). Micro-credit initiatives for equitable and sustainable development: Who pays? World Development, 27(1), 67–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0305-750x(98)00105-3

36.

Serwaah

Shneor

(2021). Women and entrepreneurial finance: A systematic review. Venture Capital, 23(4), 291–319. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691066.2021.2010507

37.

Skoufias

Leite

Narita

(2013). Expanding microfinance in Brazil: Credit utilisation and performance of small firms. Journal of Development Studies, 49(9), 1256–1269. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2013.790961

38.

Strøm

R. Ø.

D’Espallier

Mersland

(2014). Female leadership, performance, and governance in microfinance institutions. Journal of Banking & Finance, 42(1), 60–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2014.01.014

39.

Strøm

R. Ø.

D’Espallier

Mersland

(2023). Female leaders and financial inclusion: Evidence from microfinance institutions. Review of Corporate Finance, 3(1-2), 69–97. https://doi.org/10.1561/114.00000036

40.

Swain

R. B.

Wallentin

F. Y.

(2017). The impact of microfinance on factors empowering women: Differences in regional and delivery mechanisms in India’s SHG programme. Journal of Development Studies, 53(5), 684–699. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2016.1205732

41.

Theunissen

Millone

(2024). Gender effects in crowdfunded business loan campaigns. PLoS One, 19(7), Article e0305601. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0305601

42.

Zulfiqar

(2017). Does microfinance enhance gender equity in access to finance? Evidence from Pakistan. Feminist Economics, 23(1), 160–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/13545701.2016.1193213

Microcredit and Women’s Financial Empowerment: Insights from Brazilian Crediamigo Microcredit Program

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References