Financial services in China: Why not choose joint‐stock commercial banks?

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of households' choice of banks on financial service usage in China. Our results show that choosing joint‐stock commercial banks could significantly increase household usage of financial services. Moreover, the positive effect of choosing joint‐stock commercial banks on household usage of financial services is more pronounced for rural and high‐income households. In addition, we find that the financial literacy and risk tolerance of the household head can expand the positive effect of choosing joint‐stock commercial banks on household financial service usage.