Social capital and FinTech lending:: international evidence

Tony Cavoli; Isma Khan; G M Wali Ullah

doi:10.1016/j.intfin.2025.102236

Social capital and FinTech lending: international evidence

Tony Cavoli, Isma Khan, G M Wali Ullah

College of Business, Government and Law

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Abstract

FinTech credit has grown significantly in recent years and can have important economic and financial outcomes. Social capital can provide societal benefits which impact FinTech lending. There are three factors that influence this connection: the inequality of income, the prevalence of digital technology, and the quality of institutions. This paper examines the relationship between social capital and FinTech lending for a panel of 56 countries for 2013–19, focusing on these important conditioning factors. We find that that greater social capital results in higher levels of FinTech lending. These results are robust to different model specifications, after correcting for possible endogeneity issues, and over different indicators of social capital. This effect is more pronounced for countries with better institutions, higher internet penetration, and lower income inequality – highlighting the need for authorities to consider their impact when formulating policy.

Original language	English
Article number	102236
Number of pages	23
Journal	Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money
Volume	105
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intfin.2025.102236
Publication status	Published - Dec 2025

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 1 No Poverty
SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
SDG 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities

Keywords

Social capital
FinTech lending
Panel data
institutional quality

Access to Document

10.1016/j.intfin.2025.102236Licence: CC BY

Published versionFinal published version, 1.53 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "Social capital and FinTech lending:: international evidence",

abstract = "FinTech credit has grown significantly in recent years and can have important economic and financial outcomes. Social capital can provide societal benefits which impact FinTech lending. There are three factors that influence this connection: the inequality of income, the prevalence of digital technology, and the quality of institutions. This paper examines the relationship between social capital and FinTech lending for a panel of 56 countries for 2013–19, focusing on these important conditioning factors. We find that that greater social capital results in higher levels of FinTech lending. These results are robust to different model specifications, after correcting for possible endogeneity issues, and over different indicators of social capital. This effect is more pronounced for countries with better institutions, higher internet penetration, and lower income inequality – highlighting the need for authorities to consider their impact when formulating policy.",

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AU - Khan, Isma

AU - Wali Ullah, G M

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N2 - FinTech credit has grown significantly in recent years and can have important economic and financial outcomes. Social capital can provide societal benefits which impact FinTech lending. There are three factors that influence this connection: the inequality of income, the prevalence of digital technology, and the quality of institutions. This paper examines the relationship between social capital and FinTech lending for a panel of 56 countries for 2013–19, focusing on these important conditioning factors. We find that that greater social capital results in higher levels of FinTech lending. These results are robust to different model specifications, after correcting for possible endogeneity issues, and over different indicators of social capital. This effect is more pronounced for countries with better institutions, higher internet penetration, and lower income inequality – highlighting the need for authorities to consider their impact when formulating policy.

AB - FinTech credit has grown significantly in recent years and can have important economic and financial outcomes. Social capital can provide societal benefits which impact FinTech lending. There are three factors that influence this connection: the inequality of income, the prevalence of digital technology, and the quality of institutions. This paper examines the relationship between social capital and FinTech lending for a panel of 56 countries for 2013–19, focusing on these important conditioning factors. We find that that greater social capital results in higher levels of FinTech lending. These results are robust to different model specifications, after correcting for possible endogeneity issues, and over different indicators of social capital. This effect is more pronounced for countries with better institutions, higher internet penetration, and lower income inequality – highlighting the need for authorities to consider their impact when formulating policy.

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KW - Panel data

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