We estimate the effects of a debit card incentive program on consumer behavior using bank-recorded transaction micro data and a natural experiment design. Using geographic and eligibility features of a generous pilot program offered by a Midwestern regional bank, we estimate both difference in difference and regression discontinuity models, allowing us to identify changes in debit and cash usage resulting from the program. Our primary results show that the program increases the number of debit transactions per customer by between 18.8 and 20.4%. We also estimate that cash usage declines, although these estimates are not statistically significant.

中文翻译：

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借记卡激励和消费者行为：使用自然实验方法的证据

我们使用银行记录的交易微观数据和自然实验设计来估计借记卡激励计划对消费者行为的影响。使用中西部地区银行提供的慷慨试点计划的地理和资格特征，我们估计了差异模型和回归不连续性模型的差异，从而使我们能够识别该计划导致的借方和现金使用的变化。我们的主要结果表明，该计划将每位客户的借记交易数量增加了 18.8% 到 20.4%。我们还估计现金使用量下降，尽管这些估计在统计上并不显着。