The Miracle of Microfinance? Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation
通过对印度海德拉巴一项小组贷款项目的随机评估，发现小额信贷增加了小企业投资和利润，但未显著提升消费、健康、教育或女性赋权，两年后多数影响消失。
This paper reports results from the randomized evaluation of a group-lending microcredit program in Hyderabad, India. A lender worked in 52 randomly selected neighborhoods, leading to an 8.4 percentage point increase in takeup of microcredit. Small business investment and profits of preexisting businesses increased, but consumption did not significantly increase. Durable goods expenditure increased, while “temptation goods” expenditure declined. We found no significant changes in health, education, or women's empowerment. Two years later, after control areas had gained access to microcredit but households in treatment area had borrowed for longer and in larger amounts, very few significant differences persist.