ABSTRACT
For the past few decades, microfinance has played a significant role in banking the unbanked, but its impact on poverty has been disputed. Gradually, the attention of policymakers shifted to financial inclusion, hoping that financial deepening could impact poverty. The world bank has published three sets of Global Findex reports in 2011, 2014, and 2017. We examine the broad trends and cross-sections that emerge from these reports and propose some explanations of the trends. We note that despite the increasing financial inclusion, poverty has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that financial inclusion does not offer resilience to the poor. We draw an agenda for researchers where more information and research are required. These future research directions are targeted primarily to development and social policymakers and researchers. 2022– All Rights Reserved.