Global Findex Country Brief: India (World Bank Global Findex)

Summary

• Account ownership in India grew from 35 percent of adults in 2011 to 78 percent in 2021.p.1
• Despite account growth, 35 percent of financial accounts in India are inactive, a rate 7-times higher than the developing economy average.p.1
• Digital payment adoption stands at 35 percent of adults in India, leaving a 13 percentage point gender gap in digital payment usage.p.1
• The share of adults saving in any way declined by 10 percentage points since 2017 to 24 percent of adults.p.3
• Only 31 percent of adults in India could access emergency money within 30 days without much difficulty.p.5
• Over 70 percent of unbanked adults in India indicate they cannot use a financial account without help.p.6

Key insights

1. India eliminated its gender gap in account ownership between 2017 and 2021, bringing both men and women to an account ownership rate of 78 percent.p.1
2. About 160 million banked adults in India continue to pay their utility bills in cash.p.1
3. The COVID-19 pandemic encouraged digital payment adoption, with 8 percent of adults making their first digital merchant payment after it began.p.2
4. Among Indian adults who save, women are 18 percentage points more likely than men to use a savings club.p.3
5. Medical expenses represent a primary concern in India, where 66 percent of adults are very worried about paying for healthcare costs.p.5
6. Account inactivity shows a notable gender disparity, standing at 32 percent for women compared to 23 percent for men.p.6
7. Personal mobile phone access reaches 66 percent of adults in India, comprising 75 percent of men and 56 percent of women.p.7