The number of people who hold bank accounts across the developing markets globally has a long way to go to reach universal financial inclusion. According to Global Findex 2021 data, 74% of men hold bank accounts, compared with 68% of women. This gap is steadily shrinking, narrowing from 9 to 6 percentage points in developing countries. A significant part of this is thanks to the expansion of digital banking.
In parts of Asia, there are still significant gains to be made. Across south Asia, 66% of women hold an account, compared with 70% of men. However, Leora Klapper, lead economist for development economics at the World Bank, cautions that numbers are skewed by the high account ownership levels in India, where the gender gap is almost zero. “Without India, only 31% of women in the region have an account, compared with 45% of men. In Afghanistan, it is as low as 5% of women and 15% of men,” she adds.
