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Electronic Transfers of Public Subsidies to Bank Accounts (Chile Cuenta)
Last registered on April 27, 2017
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information
General Information
Title
Electronic Transfers of Public Subsidies to Bank Accounts (Chile Cuenta)
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0002081
Initial registration date
March 24, 2017
Last updated
April 27, 2017 1:41 PM EDT
Location(s)
Country
Chile
Region
South America
Primary Investigator
Name
Esteban Puentes
Affiliation
Universidad de Chile
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Other Primary Investigator(s)
PI Name
Claudia Martinez A.
PI Affiliation
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Abhijit Banerjee
PI Affiliation
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Contact Investigator
Additional Trial Information
Status
On going
Start date
2011-09-05
End date
2018-12-31
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance
Additional Keywords
Financial inclusion, savings, field experiment, CHile
JEL code(s)
C93, D14, G21, O12
Secondary IDs
Abstract
Many beneficiaries of social welfare programs around the world receive benefits in cash or by check. Can distributing welfare benefits through electronic transfers directly into bank accounts help low-income individuals enter the formal financial sector? We evaluate how transitioning a social welfare program from cash distribution to electronic transfers impacts recipients’ access to their funds, as well as their savings, debt and subjective well-being.
External Link(s)
J-PAL evaluation summary
Registration Citation
Citation
A., Claudia, Abhijit Banerjee and Esteban Puentes. 2017. "Electronic Transfers of Public Subsidies to Bank Accounts (Chile Cuenta)." AEA RCT Registry. April 27. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.2081-1.0.
Former Citation
A., Claudia et al. 2017. "Electronic Transfers of Public Subsidies to Bank Accounts (Chile Cuenta)." AEA RCT Registry. April 27. http://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/2081/history/16980.
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Experimental Details
Interventions
Intervention(s)
We evaluate a financial inclusion intervention in Chile. The intervention consist in offering an electronic payment of subsides to families of the main anti-poverty program in Chile (Programa Puente). We use bank accounts of BancoEstado (the only estate-owned commercial bank in the country) and compare this offering with the usual form of payment which is done through checks.
Intervention Start Date
2012-11-01
Intervention End Date
2013-10-31
Primary Outcomes
Primary Outcomes (end points)
Savings, Debt, Consumption
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Secondary Outcomes
Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Experimental Design
Experimental Design
The Chilean Ministry of Social Development, which runs the Puente social welfare program, is working with Banco del Estado, a state-owned but independently run bank, to electronically deposit social welfare payments into beneficiaries’ bank accounts. As the program rolled out, researchers randomly selected 3,232 Puente beneficiaries in Santiago to participate in the study. Three quarters of these beneficiaries were randomly selected to receive an offer for a bank account and direct deposit of their welfare payments into the account. The remaining beneficiaries continued to receive their payments by check, serving as a comparison group.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
The randomization was made at an individual level. The stratification variables were (1) age of the beneficiary, (2) score in the social security card, (3) time they have been participating in the program and (4) municipality.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No
Experiment Characteristics
Sample size: planned number of clusters
3,232 families
Sample size: planned number of observations
3,232 families
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
810 control; 2,422 treatment (total 3,232)

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARDS (IRBs)
IRB Name
Comittee on the use of Humans as Experimental Subjects
IRB Approval Date
2017-01-13
IRB Approval Number
1212005419
Analysis Plan