Centre for Household Finance

We are a research group within the Department of Economics at Stellenbosch University. Our goal is to advance knowledge about consumer financial markets in developing countries: how they work, and which policies may make them work more efficiently and more equitably.

We use tools from applied microeconomics and causal inference to study how people make financial decisions and what influences their choices. We focus on South African survey and administrative data in a variety of domains, including retirement, insurance, and credit.

News

• March, 2025: We welcomed Dr Matthew Olckers as a senior researcher and founding member of our group. Matthew has worked on a range of household finance topics, including retirement saving and financial literacy.
• February, 2025: Dr Allan Davids, a senior lecturer at the University of Cape Town, has joined our group as an affiliated researcher and founding member. Allan’s research focuses on housing and credit.
• January, 2025: Dr Jesse Naidoo joined Stellenbosch University as the founding director of our research centre. Here is an interview with Jesse where he describes his vision for the Centre.