India is yet to realise the potential of mobile banking and digital financial services even as only 47 per cent of the people have bank accounts, half of which lie dormant due to heavy reliance on cash transactions, says a report.
The Financial Inclusion Insights programme, operated by research consultancy InterMedia and supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is based on interviews with 45,024 Indians aged 15 years and above.
"While 47 per cent Indians hold bank accounts, close to half of these accounts lie dormant. In part, this may be due to the fact that India is yet to tap into the potential of mobile banking and other digital financial services (DFS) as compared to conventional saving and payments methods," said the report.
Only a quarter of Indian adults have either an active bank account or an active mobile money account, it added.
There is a significant gender divide in active account access, with 32 per cent of Indian male respondents having an active account compared to 18 per cent of females.
State-owned banks are the most trusted financial institutions with 72 per cent of respondents saying they fully trust these banks.
The Life Insurance Corporation and India Post are close behind in the trust ratings, while private banks lag. While trust ratings for mobile money services came in low, this was mainly a reflection of lack of awareness of these services, the report said.
There is a heavy reliance on cash as more than 90 per cent of adults who receive remittances and wages do so through cash, it added.
"Nationally, for borrowing money, most turn to people they know or those close to them. 67 per cent of respondents said they borrow through those who are close to them (like relatives, neighbours and friends) while only 11 per cent of borrowers borrow from a bank," it said.
