IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/acctfi/v65y2025i1p667-690.html

Examining the financial and commercial literacy of Australian Indigenous small business owners

Author

Listed:
  • Mark Brimble
  • Scott Weaven
  • Karen L. Wildman
  • Levon Blue
  • Kerry Bodle
  • Lorelle Frazer

Abstract

Financial and commercial literacy are essential skills for small business owners to navigate an increasingly complex financial landscape. This study examines the financial and commercial literacy of 592 Indigenous and non‐Indigenous small business owners. We found that small business owners had low levels of financial and commercial literacy with significant differences for Indigenous small business owners located in remote areas and for non‐Indigenous small business owners who are female, young, and who have lower levels of education. We demonstrate the need for more support to improve financial literacy among small business owners to enhance the long‐term sustainability of their enterprises.

Suggested Citation

  • Mark Brimble & Scott Weaven & Karen L. Wildman & Levon Blue & Kerry Bodle & Lorelle Frazer, 2025. "Examining the financial and commercial literacy of Australian Indigenous small business owners," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 65(1), pages 667-690, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:65:y:2025:i:1:p:667-690
    DOI: 10.1111/acfi.13343
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/acfi.13343
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/acfi.13343?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Xi Lin & Aaron Bruhn & Jananie William, 2019. "Extending financial literacy to insurance literacy: a survey approach," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 59(S1), pages 685-713, April.
    2. Rui Xue & Adrian Gepp & Terry J. O'Neill & Steven Stern & Bruce J. Vanstone, 2019. "Financial literacy amongst elderly Australians," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 59(S1), pages 887-918, April.
    3. Alberto Burchi & Bogdan Włodarczyk & Marek Szturo & Duccio Martelli, 2021. "The Effects of Financial Literacy on Sustainable Entrepreneurship," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-21, April.
    4. Justine S. Hastings & Brigitte C. Madrian & William L. Skimmyhorn, 2013. "Financial Literacy, Financial Education, and Economic Outcomes," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 5(1), pages 347-373, May.
    5. Fu, Jonathan, 2020. "Ability or opportunity to act: What shapes financial well-being?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    6. Dean Karlan & Martin Valdivia, 2011. "Teaching Entrepreneurship: Impact of Business Training on Microfinance Clients and Institutions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 93(2), pages 510-527, May.
    7. Margarida Abreu & Victor Mendes, 2010. "Financial literacy and portfolio diversification," Quantitative Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(5), pages 515-528.
    8. Alex Maritz & Dennis Foley, 2018. "Expanding Australian Indigenous Entrepreneurship Education Ecosystems," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(2), pages 1-14, June.
    9. Jappelli, Tullio & Padula, Mario, 2013. "Investment in financial literacy and saving decisions," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 2779-2792.
    10. Alfred Dockery, 2010. "Culture and Wellbeing: The Case of Indigenous Australians," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 99(2), pages 315-332, November.
    11. Li Liao & Jing Jian Xiao & Weiqiang Zhang & Congyi Zhou, 2017. "Financial literacy and risky asset holdings: evidence from China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(5), pages 1383-1415, December.
    12. Milena Migliavacca, 2020. "Keep your customer knowledgeable: financial advisors as educators," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(4-5), pages 402-419, March.
    13. Lusardi, Annamaria & Mitchell, Olivia S., 2011. "Financial literacy around the world: an overview," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(4), pages 497-508, October.
    14. Miriam Bruhn & Bilal Zia, 2013. "Stimulating managerial capital in emerging markets: the impact of business training for young entrepreneurs," Journal of Development Effectiveness, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(2), pages 232-266, June.
    15. Lusardi, Annamaria & Tufano, Peter, 2015. "Debt literacy, financial experiences, and overindebtedness," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(4), pages 332-368, October.
    16. Annamaria Lusardi & Olivia S. Mitchell, 2014. "The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy: Theory and Evidence," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 52(1), pages 5-44, March.
    17. Alejandro Drexler & Greg Fischer & Antoinette Schoar, 2014. "Keeping It Simple: Financial Literacy and Rules of Thumb," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 6(2), pages 1-31, April.
    18. Adele Atkinson & Flore-Anne Messy, 2012. "Measuring Financial Literacy: Results of the OECD / International Network on Financial Education (INFE) Pilot Study," OECD Working Papers on Finance, Insurance and Private Pensions 15, OECD Publishing.
    19. Boyd Hunter, 2015. "Whose business is it to employ Indigenous workers?," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 26(4), pages 631-651, December.
    20. Sondra G. Beverly & Marianne A. Hilgert & Jeanne M. Hogarth, 2003. "Household financial management: the connection between knowledge and behavior," Federal Reserve Bulletin, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.), issue Jul, pages 309-322.
    21. Downing, Janelle, 2016. "The health effects of the foreclosure crisis and unaffordable housing: A systematic review and explanation of evidence," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 88-96.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Azra Zaimovic & Anes Torlakovic & Almira Arnaut-Berilo & Tarik Zaimovic & Lejla Dedovic & Minela Nuhic Meskovic, 2023. "Mapping Financial Literacy: A Systematic Literature Review of Determinants and Recent Trends," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-30, June.
    2. Margaret Miller & Julia Reichelstein & Christian Salas & Bilal Zia, 2015. "Can You Help Someone Become Financially Capable? A Meta-Analysis of the Literature," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 30(2), pages 220-246.
    3. Marco Nieddu & Lorenzo Pandolfi, 2018. "Cutting Through the Fog: Financial Literacy and the Subjective Value of Financial Assets," CSEF Working Papers 497, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    4. Geert Van Campenhout, 2015. "Revaluing the Role of Parents as Financial Socialization Agents in Youth Financial Literacy Programs," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(1), pages 186-222, March.
    5. Oscar A. Stolper & Andreas Walter, 2017. "Financial literacy, financial advice, and financial behavior," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 87(5), pages 581-643, July.
    6. Yasmeen Ansari & Mansour Saleh Albarrak & Noorjahan Sherfudeen & Arfia Aman, 2022. "A Study of Financial Literacy of Investors—A Bibliometric Analysis," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-16, May.
    7. Li, Xiao, 2020. "When financial literacy meets textual analysis: A conceptual review," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C).
    8. Barone, Simona & Oggero, Noemi & Damilano, Marina, 2026. "Financial literacy and international portfolio diversification," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    9. François Desmoulins-Lebeault & Luc Meunier, 2018. "Moment Risks: Investment for Self and for a Firm," Decision Analysis, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 242-266, December.
    10. Barthel, Anne-Christine & Lei, Shan, 2021. "Investment in financial literacy and financial advice-seeking: Substitutes or complements?," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 385-396.
    11. Shen, Chung-Hua & Lin, Shih-Jie & Tang, De-Piao & Hsiao, Yu-Jen, 2016. "The relationship between financial disputes and financial literacy," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 46-65.
    12. Maya Haran Rosen & Orly Sade, 2017. "Does Financial Regulation Unintentionally Ignore Less Privileged Populations? The Investigation of a Regulatory Fintech Advancement, Objective and Subjective Financial Literacy," Bank of Israel Working Papers 2017.10, Bank of Israel.
    13. Annamaria Lusardi & Olivia S. Mitchell, 2014. "The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy: Theory and Evidence," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 52(1), pages 5-44, March.
    14. Entorf, Horst & Hou, Jia, 2018. "Financial education for the disadvantaged? A review," SAFE Working Paper Series 205, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE.
    15. Noviarini, Jelita & Coleman, Andrew & Roberts, Helen & Whiting, Rosalind H., 2023. "Financial literacy and retirees' resource allocation decisions in New Zealand," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    16. repec:osf:osfxxx:b7zd6_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Sholevar, Maryam & Harris, Laurence, 2019. "Mind the gap: A discussion paper on Financial Literacy, Financial behaviour and Financial Education : Is there any Gender Gap?," OSF Preprints b7zd6, Center for Open Science.
    18. Bose, Udichibarna & MacDonald, Ronald & Tsoukas, Serafeim, 2015. "Education and the local equity bias around the world," 2007 Annual Meeting, July 29-August 1, 2007, Portland, Oregon TN 2015-76, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    19. Lusardi, Annamaria & Kaiser, Tim, 2024. "Financial literacy and financial education: An overview," CEPR Discussion Papers 19185, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    20. Krishna Reddy & Damien Wallace & Nirosha Hewa Wellalage, 2025. "The impact of financial literacy on financial inclusion," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 50(4), pages 1187-1214, November.
    21. Fong, Joelle H., 2025. "Financial literacy and household financial behavior in Singapore," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:65:y:2025:i:1:p:667-690. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaanzea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.