Financial Access Initiative

Financial Access Initiative
Founded2006
FocusFinancial Access, Poverty Alleviation, Microfinance
Location
  • Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service, New York University, New York
Area served
Global
Key people
Dean Karlan, Director, Lead Researcher
Jonathan Morduch, Managing Director, Lead Researcher
Sendhil Mullainathan, Director, Lead Researcher
Websitewww.financialaccess.org

The Financial Access Initiative (FAI) is an American consortium, established in 2006, of researchers at New York University (NYU), Yale University, Harvard University and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) focused on finding answers to how financial sectors can better meet the needs of poor households.

The Initiative was launched with core funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at NYU.[1] Led by Managing Director Jonathan Morduch (NYU), Dean Karlan (Yale), Sendhil Mullainathan (Harvard), the Initiative seeks to provide rigorous research on the impacts of financial access and on innovative ways to improve access. FAI’s website states that financial access holds the promise to help low-income individuals in developing countries manage their economic lives and build wealth.[2]

  1. ^ "Expanding Banking Access to the Poor: New Gates Foundation Initiative Based at Wagner". NYU Wagner News and Events. May 2, 2007.
  2. ^ "Financial Access Initiative Vision". Financial Access Initiative. Retrieved September 5, 2013.