The Changing Financial Landscape : Opportunities and Challenges for the Middle East and North Africa

Grais, Wafik ; Kantur, Zeynep

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: AGRICULTURE;    BANKING SECTOR;    BANKING SYSTEM;    BANKING SYSTEMS;    BOND MARKETS;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-3050
RP-ID  :  WPS3050

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Economists have come to acknowledge thatfinance matters for development more, and in more ways thanhad been recognized for a long time. Changes in thefinancial services industry are providing immensepossibilities for economic development. Grais and Kanturpresent a framework to help understand the changes occurringin the financial landscape. They also attempt to lay out theopportunities and the challenges the Middle East andNorthern Africa region faces in light of these changes. Theframework views financial development as a two-way,continuous, and dynamic interaction between, on the onehand, three driving forces shaping the industry and, on theother hand, four stylized dimensions of financial services.These driving forces jointly modify the financial landscapeand are at the same time influenced by the effects of thesechanges. The three driving forces are financialliberalization, technological changes, and market innovationin response to demands for financial services. The fourdimensions of financial services that are altered by theforces at play are disintermediation, institutionalization,modernization, and globalization. The authors provide astrategic perspective on the opportunities and challengesthe profound changes in the financial industry bring to theMiddle East and North Africa region, its policymakers, andmarket participants.