Digital access and algorithmic finance readiness among secondary students in caribbean Colombia

Abstract

This article examines whether household digital access and municipal financial infrastructure are associated with readiness for algorithmic finance among secondary students in Barranquilla and Cartagena, Colombia. Using the Excel dataset provided for this study, the analysis integrates 1600 student-level observations from 2021 to 2024 with measures of digital access, school sector, socioeconomic status, parental education, financial access density and municipal financial inclusion. Two data-verification procedures and three hypothesis tests are applied. The findings show that household digital access, socioeconomic stratum, parental education and private-school attendance are consistently associated with higher readiness, while municipal financial density alone is not sufficient to reduce inequality.