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International remittance rails as infrastructures: embeddedness, innovation and financial access in developing economies

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  • Daivi Rodima-Taylor
  • William W. Grimes

Abstract

Remittances to developing economies constitute one of their most important and consistent forms of capital inflow, but have long been limited by costs and risks associated with trans-border payments. New digital platforms lower these, with significant implications for financial inclusion and economic development. Constituting an important element of developing countries’ engagement with international finance, remittances engender new opportunities for empowerment and vulnerability. This article analyzes recent developments in international remittances to developing countries through the lens of infrastructure. The infrastructural perspective reveals important junction points between diverse money transfer pathways and institutions, depicting their spatial configuration and relationality as well as their potential to affect power differentials, and allowing for a socially embedded view of digital disruption. Drawing on examples in Africa and Asia, we show that the new generation of remittance infrastructures are best understood as assemblages of multiple elements, conjoining monopolistic trunks that depend on local innovations to traverse the ‘last mile’ to reach end-users. The vibrancy and indispensability of local networks and innovation, along with competition among core platforms, allow for significant agency and economic opportunity even among communities beset by poverty.

Suggested Citation

  • Daivi Rodima-Taylor & William W. Grimes, 2019. "International remittance rails as infrastructures: embeddedness, innovation and financial access in developing economies," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(5), pages 839-862, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:rripxx:v:26:y:2019:i:5:p:839-862
    DOI: 10.1080/09692290.2019.1607766
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    Cited by:

    1. Guillaume Beaumier & Kevin Kalomeni & Malcolm Campbell‐Verduyn & Marc Lenglet & Serena Natile & Marielle Papin & Daivi Rodima‐Taylor & Arthur Silve & Falin Zhang, 2020. "Global Regulations for a Digital Economy: Between New and Old Challenges," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 11(4), pages 515-522, September.
    2. Cirolia, Liza Rose & Hall, Suzanne & Nyamnjoh, Henrietta, 2022. "Remittance micro-worlds and migrant infrastructure: circulations, disruptions, and the movement of money," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 110472, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    3. Hannes Warnecke-Berger, 2022. "The financialization of remittances and the individualization of development: A new power geometry of global development," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 54(4), pages 702-721, June.
    4. Waqas Bin Khidmat & Nayar Rafique & Muhammad Umar, 2024. "Economic policy uncertainty and remittances: mediating role of foreign exchange rate," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 1-30, August.
    5. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Wang, Chih-Wei & Ho, Shan-Ju, 2022. "Financial aid and financial inclusion: Does risk uncertainty matter?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    6. Nick Bernards & Malcolm Campbell‐Verduyn & Daivi Rodima‐Taylor & Jerome Duberry & Quinn DuPont & Andreas Dimmelmeier & Moritz Huetten & Laura C. Mahrenbach & Tony Porter & Bernhard Reinsberg, 2020. "Interrogating Technology‐led Experiments in Sustainability Governance," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 11(4), pages 523-531, September.
    7. Gascón, Patricia & Larramona, Gemma & Salvador, Manuel, 2023. "The impact of digitalisation on remittances. Evidence from El Salvador," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(4).

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