The Causal Relationship Between Financial Development and Underground Economy in Iran: MIMIC and Hsiao Causality Approach

The underground economy is one of the problems of developing oil economies such as Iran. It is argued that the underground economy can hinder financial development, and from the reciprocal view, financial development can reduce the size of the underground economy. Accordingly, the present study examines the causality between financial development (bank-oriented and stock-oriented) and the volume of underground economy in the Iran's economy by the Hsiao causality method during the period of 1350-1396. In this study, the MIMIC approach was used to calculate the underground economy index in Iran. Based on the results, in the Iran economy before the oil shock of 1352 and also the period of revolution and war (1356-1368) has had a low level and decreasing trend in terms of underground economy. But for the rest of the years, the trend has been roughly incremental. According to the Hsiao causality test, the underground economy is not the cause of the bank based financial development-and stock based financial development; on the contrary, bank based financial development-and stock based financial development are the cause of the underground economy. This means that with financial development, part of the underground economy can be controlled in the Iran economy.