Credit reporting systems are an important ingredient for ?nancial markets. These systems are based upon the unique identi?cation of borrowers, which is enabled if a compulsory identi?cation system exists in a country. We present evidence derived from di?erence-in-di?erence analyses on the impact of the interplay of credit reporting and identi?cation systems on ?nancial access and intermediation in 172 countries during years of 2000 to 2008. Our results suggest that the introduction of an identi?cation system has a positive e?ect on ?nancial intermediation (bank credit to deposits) and ?nancial access (private credit to GDP), especially in countries where there is also a credit reporting system. This e?ect exists net of other country characteristics.
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