摘要：This paper assesses financial sector development in Latin America, both in the banking
system and in the capital markets. After a brief review of the explanatory factors and the
definitions of financial development found in the literature, Latin American countries are
classified in groups of similar characteristics by using cluster analysis - first worldwide and
second within the region - in terms of financial depth and per capita income. In the worldwide
exercise, virtually all Latin American countries appear in the same cluster, which argues in
favor of a regional dimension in financial development. A comparison of the Asian and
Eastern European emerging regions shows that Latin America lags behind Asia in terms of
financial development and compares slightly unfavorably with Eastern Europe. In the regional
cluster exercise, four relatively homogeneous groups of Latin American countries are found.
Stylized facts of the four groups’ banking sectors and capital markets show - in line with the
results of the more recent economic literature - that those countries which have deeper
financial systems are also those with a more efficient financial system. Although no
conclusions on causality can be drawn from this review, it argues in favor of a virtuous circle,
in terms of financial depth and efficiency, for countries with the most appropriate structure of
the financial system.
