2024-03-18 21:47:34
The new edition “X-ray of Credit in Ecuador”, from the Association of Private Banks of Ecuador (ASOBANCA) and Aval Buró, establishes that between January and December 2023, 873,469 people accessed credit for a total of USD 9,112 million.
Of that total, 445,469, that is, 51% are women and the remaining 49% are men, which reflects the reduction of the gender gap in banks that are moving towards financial inclusion.
According to the publication, women chose, above all, to access microcredit. In fact, 59% of new microcredit operations were granted to women in 2023, representing a total of 287,534 operations. That is, 6 out of every 10 dollars of the new microcredits were given to women.
access to credits
The document analyzes clients who accessed credit in the banking system for the first time, and indicates that there were 63,024 new clients in 2023.
Of that total, 49% (31 thousand) are women, 47% (30 thousand) are men and the remaining 4% are companies of all sizes and clients without information. This indicates that little by little, year after year, the gap between men and women is closing.
The x-ray shows that women are better payers than men and that they have, on average, a better credit score. For example, women between 26 and 35 years old have a credit score of 715 points, while men in the same age range have a score of 706.
The credit score is one of the elements analyzed by financial institutions within the credit evaluation process, whose value ranges from 1 to 999, the process of which is carried out by the credit bureaus. With this score, the probability that the person has a default on their credit is identified.
The higher the score, the lower the probability of default is (high score equals low probability of default) and the closer it is to 1, the greater this probability is.
External financing
In addition, banks have proactively sought external financing to target especially women. Between 2019 and 2023, banks received USD 3,140.5 million in financing either by direct credit or by thematic bonds (social, social Gender and Social Gender and Inclusion), whose funds were allocated, above all, to productive loans for women.
UN Women mentions that the credit in their hands has a broader enhancing effect on the economy because it transfers greater resources to their family, translating into well-being and more benefits.
In the banks, members of ASOBANCA, there is also an important labor participation of women. In addition to supporting with financing, they are important employers of women. As of 2022, 20,765 people worked in private banks and, of that total, 57.8% are women.
In addition, 40% of leadership positions (vice presidents and management) are occupied by women, there are even banking entities that have up to 60% of leadership positions occupied by them. Likewise, the boards of directors of member banks have women. (YO)
By: Ecuador 221