Mobilution
vritti
January 2020
15
— Mohit Bhargava
Financial inclusion is rising rapidly. According to the World Bank,
globally, 69 per cent of adults or 3.8 billion people held an
account at a financial institution in 2017, up from 62 per cent
in 2014 and 51 per cent in 2011. Mobile money has played a
significant role in accelerating financial inclusion [1].
However, 1.7 billion people are still financially excluded [1].
A significant number of these reside in rural areas; many are
women, less educated and belong to the poorest 40 per cent of
population. Therefore, regulators, mobile money providers,
financial institutions and government agencies require
redoubled efforts to bring these sections into the formal financial
ecosystem. This article identifies five strategies to extend the
penetration of mobile money in rural areas.
[1]
World Bank Findex