Robert M. Townsend of MIT talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about development and the role of financial institutions in growth. Drawing on his research, particularly his surveys of households in Thailand, Townsend argues that both informal networks and arrangements and formal financial institutions...

Robert M. Townsend, Interviewed by Stephen Yeo Robert M. Townsend of MIT talks about his research on how the lives of the world’s poor can be improved through more efficient financial systems. Drawing on data gathered from an extensive survey of Thai households, Townsend discusses risk-sharing and the...

Economist’s study shows how the poor in developing countries become wealthier. Peter Dizikes, MIT News Office January 10, 2011 For all the detailed tools developed to study finance in past decades, relatively few scholars have brought those methods to bear on a pressing social question: How do poor people...

La conferencia titulada “Acumulación de Riqueza y Factores que Explican el Éxito” dio inicio al encuentro que contó con la participación del destacado académico del MIT, Robert Townsend. El encuentro profundizó sobre la importancia de la realización de la primera Encuesta Longitudinal de Empresas (ELE...