Portfolios of the Poor: How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day book cover

Portfolios of the Poor

How the World's Poor Live on $2 a Day

Daryl Collins
3.95(1163 Reviews)

Overview of Portfolios of the Poor

Discover how the world's poorest manage finances with stunning ingenuity. "Portfolios of the Poor" revolutionized development economics by revealing sophisticated money management strategies among those living on $2 daily. How do they save more effectively than many middle-class Americans? The answer reshapes everything we thought about poverty.

Key Themes in Portfolios of the Poor

  • financial diaries
  • informal savings mechanisms
  • cash flow management
  • microfinance limitations
  • income volatility

Quotes from Portfolios of the Poor

  • The poorest people are some of the most active and sophisticated money managers.

  • Inadequate financial tools create a constant state of financial stress.

  • Child labor remained common in South Asia.

  • Every household actively managed both savings and debt simultaneously.

  • Lower incomes require more rather than less active financial management.

Characters in Portfolios of the Poor

  • Daryl CollinsLead author and researcher of the study
  • Subir and MumtazA couple in Dhaka managing multiple income sources
  • Somnath and JainathBrothers working as garment factory workers
  • Hamid and KhadejaA couple managing a complex six-instrument portfolio

About the Author

About the Author of Portfolios of the Poor

Dr. Daryl Collins, co-author of Portfolios of the Poor: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day, is a pioneering economist and global authority on financial inclusion and economic vulnerability. With a PhD from New York University and degrees from the London School of Economics, her groundbreaking work explores how low-income households manage finances, blending academic rigor with real-world insights from decades of research across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

As CEO of Decodis and former leader of BFA Global, she has spearheaded Financial Diaries studies in over 10 countries, reshaping policies for institutions like the World Bank and CGAP.

A sought-after speaker and advisor, Collins bridges academia and practice, having taught at the University of Cape Town and collaborated with governments, NGOs, and private firms. Her seminal book—hailed for revolutionizing understanding of poverty—is rooted in meticulous fieldwork tracking daily financial decisions of the poor. Translated into multiple languages, it remains essential reading for development professionals and economists.

Collins’ continued advocacy for data-driven solutions to inequality underscores her mission to amplify marginalized voices in global finance systems.

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"Reading used to feel like a chore. Now it’s just part of my lifestyle."

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