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ProjectDo small businesses avoid the bank, or do loan officers refuse to lend? Study IDsspp-2026-0031-v1 Study Title
Do small businesses avoid the bank, or do loan officers refuse to lend AuthorsEmma Zhang Completion Time15 Minutes Close Date (UTC)Oct. 1, 2026 DisciplineEconomics FieldDevelopment Economics CountryPakistan Abstract Improving small-business access to bank loans is often cited as a way of accelerating economic growth. Even though government subsidies for small business loans exist in over 100 low and middle-income countries, very few businesses apply. We investigate how small-business managers interact with bank loan officers, who gate-keep the loan application process, by running a series of field experiments in Pakistan.
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Incentive Details
Incentive Type
Based on forecast accuracy
Calculation Method
Recipient PoolIncentives are lottery-based
Lottery Percentage
1.0%
Citation
Emma Zhang. 2026. "Do small businesses avoid the bank, or do loan officers refuse to lend." Social Science Prediction Platform. August 17. https://socialscienceprediction.org/s/czxby4