Access to Financial Services for Tiny Businesses: What is the Role of Microcredit?

Abstract for Book: Public policy considerations intersect with virtually everything the financial services sector does, yet governments make many public policy decisions without specific data on the Canadian marketplace. In Financial Services and Public Policy, contributors address this shortcoming by considering a wide range of concerns, including lending to small businesses, the role of microcredit and raising venture capital, the impact of state guarantees of pension plans, the structure and performance of credit unions, and maintaining competition after bank mergers. The financial services sector drives the Canadian economy. It is the banker, lender, broker, and insurer of millions of Canadians at every stage of their lives. It provides corporate finance, shapes the growth of small business, and assists individual Canadians to achieve their financial goals. It is a major employer all across the country. Canadian financial institutions are also active globally and are influenced by international as well as domestic policy issues and decisions. Financial Services and Public Policy lays the foundation for today's public policy debates and decisions that will shape Canada's financial services sector into the twenty-first century.