Evaluating the Role of Innovative Technologies in China’s Financial Inclusion Milestone

Abstract: The digital revolution has fostered financial inclusion and China has achieved remarkable success in this journey by leveraging technologies such as internet and mobile phones. This study aims to evaluate the role of technology, in terms of Internet, Big data and Machine Learning, in driving digital financial inclusion in China with reference to existing literatures. It is concluded that technologies merely act as supporter and facilitator of the financial development and inclusion, while the key player remain with the government. This study highlights the problems attached to the digital finance in China, and the how the government could play a role to address such issues. It is concluded that while innovative technologies accelerate the process of financial inclusion, it is crucial to invest in digital literacy and connectivity to close the access gaps to financial services. As this study mainly focus on Internet and fintech, future research is recommended to evaluate how the Regulatory Technology (RegTech) and Block-Chain Technology in mitigating financial risks and uncertainties and whether digital yuan has a significant impact on financial inclusion since the research on this topic area is limited.

Key words: financial inclusion, fintech, digital finance, microlending, innovative finance

JEL code: G