Research On The Impact Of Digital Inclusive Finance On Household Financial Asset Allocation In Western China

In recent years,due to rapid economic development,people’s incomes have been increasing and household wealth has been rapidly accumulated,thus gradually highlighting the importance of household financial asset allocation.Due to the harsh natural environment,backward infrastructure and lack of financial services in the western region,it is difficult to meet the needs of household financial asset allocation,and there are problems such as "limited participation" in risky financial asset investment,single structure of household financial assets,and difficulty in preserving and increasing value.Digital inclusive finance has effectively served the "long tail" of the economy and society,expanding the coverage of financial services and increasing access to them.More and more households are optimising their asset allocation structure through diversified channels such as payments,money funds and investments,deepening the depth of use of digital inclusive finance.At the same time,digital inclusive financial services have broken the time and space constraints of traditional financial services and reduced the transaction costs of financial services.Therefore,studying the impact of digital inclusive finance on the allocation of household financial assets in the western region can improve the efficiency of capital utilisation,optimise the asset allocation structure,maximise the return on household financial assets and promote the healthy development of the capital market.This thesis firstly compares the relevant studies of domestic and foreign scholars on digital inclusive finance,household financial asset allocation and the impact of digital inclusive finance on household financial asset allocation,based on which the concept is defined and relevant theories are elaborated.Secondly,it describes the current situation of the development of digital inclusive finance and household financial asset allocation in the western region.Thirdly,based on the survey data of the China Household Finance Survey(CHFS)2019 released by the Family Finance Research Centre of Southwest University of Finance and Economics and the Digital Inclusive Finance Index 2019 of Peking University,the Probit model is applied to study the impact of the total digital inclusive finance index and three dimensional indicators of coverage breadth,usage depth and digitalisation on households’ risky financial assets and risk-free financial assets in the western region Fourth,we use a sub-sample regression to test the impact of the digital financial inclusion index on the allocation structure of risky and risk-free financial assets of households in the western region.Fourthly,the heterogeneity of net worth,urban-rural,age and literacy is tested through sub-sample regressions;the mediating effect model is used to conclude that financial literacy is an important mediating variable in the process of its influence.Finally,based on the empirical results,recommendations are made to improve digital infrastructure and increase the degree of digitalisation in the western region;provide differentiated financial services to increase households’ willingness to allocate their financial resources;and promote the in-depth development of digital inclusive finance to optimise the allocation structure of households’ financial assets.The findings show that:(1)The overall digital financial inclusion index and the three dimensional indicators of breadth of coverage,depth of use,and degree of digitization all significantly increase the willingness to allocate and hold risky and risk-free financial assets among households in the western region;(2)the results of the heterogeneity analysis in terms of household net worth,age,urban and rural areas and education level show that digital financial inclusion has a more significant contribution to the willingness to allocate and hold a proportion of risky financial assets for households with high net worth,youth,urban and junior high school education level in the western region,and a more significant contribution to the willingness to allocate and hold a proportion of risk-free financial assets for households with medium net worth,rural and middle-aged;(3)financial literacy plays a mediating role in the allocation of financial assets to households in the western region through digital inclusion.