Global Financial Development published by The World Bank (2021).
The Global Financial Development Database is an extensive dataset of financial system characteristics for 214 economies. It contains annual data, starting from 1960. It has been last updated in September 2019 and contains data through 2017 for 109 indicators, capturing various aspects of financial institutions and markets.
The Global Financial Development Database is based on a “4×2 framework”. Specifically, it includes measures of (1) depth, (2) access, (3) efficiency, and (4) stability of financial systems. Each of these characteristics captures both (1) financial institutions (for example banks and insurance companies), and (2) financial markets (such as stock markets and bond markets). It also provides other useful indicators, such as measures of concentration and competition in the banking sector. The database builds on, updates, and extends previous efforts, in particular the data collected for the Database on Financial Development and Structure.
For more on the Global Financial Development Database, the 4×2 framework, and the underlying theoretical and empirical literature, see chapter 1 of the 2013 Global Financial Development Report, and also Cihák, Martin, Asli Demirgüç-Kunt, Erik Feyen, and Ross Levine. 2012. “Benchmarking Financial Systems around the World.” Policy Research Working Paper 6175, World Bank, Washington, DC. (A version of the paper appeared in the Journal of Financial Perspectives.).
