Virtual lecture: Big Techs, QR Code Payments and Financial Inclusion

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Leonardo Gambacorta (Bank for International Settlements)

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via Zoom

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Leonardo Gambacorta is the Head of the Innovation and the Digital Economy unit at the BIS. His fields of interest are Finance, Monetary Policy and Central Banking.

Using a unique dataset of around half a million Chinese firms that use a QR code-based mobile payment system, we find that (i) the creation of a digital payment footprint allows firms to access credit provided by the same big tech company; (ii) transaction data generated via QR code generate spillover effects on access to bank credit; and (iii) there are positive effects of access to big tech credit on sales, including during the Covid-19 shock. The findings suggest that access to innovative payment methods helps micro firms build up credit history, and that using big tech credit can ease access to bank credit.

To join the lecture via ZOOM, please contact Melina Ludolph.