Financial Deepening and Shadow Economy Transformation in Belt and Road Economies: Pathways to Inclusive Growth

Authors

  • Akasha Saeed MS Scholar, Department of Business Administration, Rawalpindi Women University, Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.
  • Shoaib Ghulam Lecturer, Faculty of Management Sciences, NUML, Rawalpindi Campus, Punjab, Pakistan.
  • Hira Idrees Senior Lecturer (Finance), Bahria Business School, Islamabad, Pakistan.
  • Noor Fatima MS Scholar, Foundation University Islamabad, Pakistan.
  • Dr. Shahzad Hussain Assistant Professor, Department of Business Administration, Rawalpindi Women University (RWU), Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63062/trt/SG25.082

Keywords:

Financial Deepening, Shadow Economy, BRI Countries

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the direction of the connection between financial deepening (FD) and shadow economy in Belt and Road Initiative economies (BRI). The financial deepening is captured via the comprehensive financial development index based on the depth, access, and efficiency of financial institutions. Whereas, the shadow economy is measured via the informal economy. The finding reveals the strong negative impact of inclusive financial development on the shadow economy in BRI countries. The results are consistent across the alternative proxies of financial deepening. These outcomes enrich modernization and inclusion theories and offer recommendations for legislatures who wish to advance the formal structured economic action and decrease informal employment, tax evasion, and unauthorized businesses in BRI countries.

Author Biography

  • Shoaib Ghulam, Lecturer, Faculty of Management Sciences, NUML, Rawalpindi Campus, Punjab, Pakistan.

    Corresponding Author: [email protected]

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Published

2025-05-31

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 2 (2025): SPRING 2025

Section

Articles

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Saeed, A., Ghulam, S., Idrees, H., Fatima, N., & Hussain, S. (2025). Financial Deepening and Shadow Economy Transformation in Belt and Road Economies: Pathways to Inclusive Growth. The Regional Tribune, 4(2), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.63062/trt/SG25.082