This paper examines whether socially responsible investing can be financially profitable using data from the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) industry in the United States over the period 2019-2023. The performance of such ETFs is assessed by discriminating between funds with domestic focus and funds that invest in companies from overseas. The results show that the domestic group beats the international one, when raw and risk-adjusted are taken into consideration. On the other hand, both groups cannot produce any material alpha against the S&P 500 Index, at least during the period under study. Our analysis also reveals that factors concerning the size, value, robustness, conservativeness and momentum of the underlying stocks are relevant to assessing the performance of responsible ETFs in the US.

Keywords: Socially Responsible Investing, ETFs, Performance, Risk-Adjusted Return.

JEL Classification Codes: G11

This study examined the effect of claims settlement on the profitability of insurance business in Nigeria. The objectives of the study were to examine the effect of non-life insurance business claims settlement on the profitability of insurance companies in Nigeria and to assess the impact of life insurance business claims settlement on the profitability of insurance companies in Nigeria. An ex-post facto research design was employed. Data for the study was collected from the annual publications of the Nigerian insurance digest and National Insurance Commission for 10 years’ period 2012-2022. Regression results revealed that claims paid by either life or non-life insurance business have statistical significant effect on the profitability of insurance business in Nigeria. The study recommends that insurance company should embrace strategies for customer satisfaction through effective and efficient claims settlement practices, there should be proper risk management system and that insurance companies should have a claims management department properly structured with highly technical, trained and experienced staff so as to manage the claims settlement process properly, knowing fully well that a well-managed claim leads to profitability through customer retention.

Keywords: Claims Settlement, Life Assurance, Non-Life Assurance, Insurance Business, Profitability

South Africa has a history of exclusion and exploitation of the majority by the minority. The post-apartheid dispensation has involved redress and ensuring inclusion of those historically excluded. The financial services sector is critical for inclusion, at least as far as banking services are concerned. Technology has played a significant role in the transformation of the financial services sector, ensuring that the previously excluded or underserved consumers receive banking services. It is in this context that the paper examines the role of financial technologies (fintechs) in financial inclusion in South Africa, drawing from qualitative research that was carried out by interviewing 18 industry experts and 17 financial services customers. The findings confirm that fintechs enhance financial inclusion by creating access to financial services for previously excluded people and to small businesses, among other advantages brought about by and through fintechs. The paper argues that fintechs
play a significant role in expanding the reach of financial services and contribute to the achievement of some sustainable development goals. Therefore, policies and initiatives aimed at broadening access to financial services should leverage through fintechs.

Keywords: Financial inclusion, financial technologies, access, cost reduction.

JEL: N27, O16, O33

The relationship between capital market instruments and deposit money banks is multifaceted and symbiotic, contributing significantly to the dynamics of the financial system. This study empirically investigated the relationship between capital market instruments and the performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria between 1992 and 2022. Annual data on the various variables of capital market instruments for Nigeria were collected and analyzed using ordinary least square (OLS) method. From the analyzed data, government bond has a very positive and significant effect on the performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria as measured by total asset of deposit money banks in Nigeria, while corporate bond has a positive but not significant impact on the performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Also, it was observed from the study that there is negative and not significant impact of monetary policy rate on the performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Therefore, the study concludes that capital market and its instruments are veritable investment portfolio outlets for deposit money banks in Nigeria in their choice of portfolio investments. The study therefore, recommends that governments at all levels in Nigeria should further cultivate the habit of patronizing the capital market by floating bonds in the domestic market in their borrowing decisions. This would not only encourage the development of the Nigerian capital market but would encourage deposit money banks especially in the light of recent bank recapitalization as announced by the central bank of Nigeria, and other entities to patronize the market for their portfolio investment decisions. Also, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as the sole regulator of the capital market in Nigeria should formulate policies that would attract the floating of corporate bonds by corporate entities in the market in order to be able to raise funds for their operations.

Keywords: Capital Market Instruments, Deposit Money Banks, Corporate Bonds

The Study investigated macroeconomic fundamentals as enhancers of the attraction of Diaspora remittance in Nigeria. The study used remittance inflows as measure of Diaspora Remittance and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), inflation rate, exchange rate and unemployment rate as measures of macroeconomic fundamentals. The Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression technique was deployed to analyse the data collected from the World Bank data base from 1990 to 2021. The findings revealed that the relationship between inflation rate and Diaspora remittance is positive and not significant, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has both positive and significant relationship with Diaspora remittance, likewise unemployment rate and only exchange rate has a negative but significant relationship with Diaspora remittance in Nigeria. Following from the foregoing findings, the study recommended that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) being the monetary and regulatory authority of the banking system, should formulate policies that would encourage the inflow of Diaspora remittance through the banking system, and also, the monetary authority should make efforts to reduce inflation rate to a single digit in Nigeria; such that Diaspora remittances are well utilized to boost employment generation in the economy.

Keywords: Macroeconomic Fundamentals, Diaspora Remittance, Gross Domestic Product, Monetary Authority

The study adopts a quantitative research design and made use of MLRT in STATA 14 via a sample of 127 women respondents collected using a well-structured questionnaire and with the application of a snowball sampling technique.

The result showed that the acquisition of mobile money account and ownership and use of ATM card have a statistically positive significant relationship with household economic welfare in Bamenda town, Cameroon as oppose to women borrowing money from banks and other sources. Therefore, the study recommended that government through the Bamenda municipality intensify existing strategies to encourage the financial inclusion of women as it will positively affect poverty reduction.

Considering that there is a growing inter-governmental commitment to accelerate financial inclusion for women and men globally, empirically, this study has closed the gap in the literature as it attempted to quantify the link between women financial inclusion and household economic welfare in Bamenda, Cameroon.

Keywords: Women, Financial Inclusion, household Economic Welfare, Bamenda Municipality

An allocation of foreign capital inflows in productive way is necessary but not sufficient condition to achieve the sustainable economic growth. Therefore, the impact of FCIs on economic growth with has not yet investigated in Ethiopia. As a result, this paper explores the Impact of FCI inflow on economic growth by allowing the link between the two far variables to be human capital and labor force during the period 1981–2020 by applying the vector error correction model. Specifically, the study tries to answer the question of whether foreign capital inflow variables have any significant effect on the economic growth of the country. The empirical result reveals that, in the long run, a high level of foreign aid has a significant positive effect on economic growth. On the other hand, the stock of external debt stock has a negative and significant effect on economic growth and poses great challenges to the economy. While remittances have no significant effect on both the long and short run. Moreover, control variables like labour force have a significant positive impact, while human capital proxied by educational expenditure has a negative and significant effect on the economic growth of Ethiopia.

Keywords: Foreign aid, Foreign external debt sock, Remittance, Human Capital, Economic Growth

India has witnessed remarkable economic progress, demographic and epidemiological transitions and social change since the structural adjustment programme of 1991. The size of public expenditure on health is very low in India compared to many other countries and there have been many health policies in place since economic reforms. These raise the question that how has the size of public expenditure on health has progressed during the post-reform India in response to all these. The existing studies which have analysed the national level trends in public spending on health do not provide an up to date and thirty years-long macro picture of health spending trends since 1991 in India. Given this context, this study attempts to analyse the macro trends in public expenditure on health at the national level in India during the period since 1991 using various statistic tools. The analysis finds that India has a lower size of public expenditure both globally and historically. The size of public expenditure on health was stagnant as a share of GDP for long years after the reforms though the per capita size of public expenditure on health has increased. There are various political or policy regime breaks in the growth of public expenditure on health in India and the effect of pandemic on the size of public expenditure on health was transitory in nature.