Empirical Analysis of Financial Deepening, Money Supply Velocity, and Human Development in Nigeria

Abstract Depth of financial institutions and monetary flow velocity are critical elements in human development, for boosting monetary efficiency, investment, and availability of capital, driving enhanced living standards and sustainable human development. This study thus examines the impact of the organized financial sector and monetary expansion on human development in Nigeria, focusing on monetary flow velocity (MFV), Financial Deepening Index (FDI), and the Index of human development (IHD). Autoregressive Distributed Lag (A.R.D.L) model and Robust Least Squares regression (RLSR) analysis are employed, investigating both short and long term influence of institutional financial deepening and monetary flow velocity on human development. Results from analysis indicate that institutional financial deepening meaningfully enhances human development in the long run, signifying that a soundly organized financial sector provides backings for socio-economic progress. Furthermore, whereas the short-term effects of monetary flow velocity are minimal, long-term results demonstrate positive influences on IHD, underscoring the importance of efficient money circulation for sustainable development. However, lagged effects of both FDI and MFV reveal negative associations with IHD, indicating potential short-term challenges in financial sector deepening. With the result showing a 0.6886 R-squared value, the model demonstrates strong explanatory power for target variable. This study concludes that enhancing financial services and optimizing monetary velocity is crucial for promoting inclusive growth and improving human development for the country. In recommendations, stimulating inclusive financial services and prioritizing liquidity management is advocated to optimize human development. Keywords: Economic development, Human development, Financial deepening, Money supply velocity, Financial intermediation.