Mobile money and the Internet are driving financial inclusion by expanding access to accounts and financial services worldwide. Mobile money, in particular, has become a key driver of growth in account ownership.
According to the World Bank Group’s Global Findex 2025 report, 79% of adults globally now have an account either at a bank or similar financial institution such as a credit union, microfinance institution, or post office or through a mobile money provider. The study, which is based on a 2024 survey of more than 140,000 people in 130+ economies, found that low- and middle-income economies are leading the surge, fueled by widespread adoption of mobile money.
Financial account ownership growth
Between 2011 and 2024, global account ownership increased by a remarkable 28 points. Though growth was broad-based, low- and middle-income economies saw much steeper gains, with financial account ownership climbing 33 points from 42% in 2011 to 75% in 2024, representing a staggering 80% increase.
In contrast, high-income economies such as Canada, Japan, and the Netherlands, saw much smaller increases, with account ownership growing by just 8 points from 87% in 2011 to 95% in 2024.
The biggest increases occurred in Senegal and the Kyrgyz Republic, where account ownership surged by 70 points between 2011 and 2024. In Uganda, Zambia, Ghana, India, and Armenia ownership also increased remarkably, growing by more than 50 points.
The critical role of mobile money
Mobile money has been a major driver of this progress. In Sub-Saharan Africa, 40% of adults in the region had a mobile money account in 2024, up from 27% in 2021. This surge contributed to the rise in financial access, with overall account ownership growing sharply from 49% to 58% in the same period.
Sub-Saharan Africa also stands out for having a third of its account owners, or 20% of all adults, with no other kind of account than mobile money. For these people, mobile money represents their only entry point into the formal financial system, underscoring critical impact on financial inclusion.
Mobile money first emerged in East Africa but has since spread across the world. In Latin America and the Caribbean, adoption of mobile money, typically used in combination with or to digitally enable accounts at banks and similar financial institutions, is approaching levels seen in Sub-Saharan Africa. 37% of adults in the region had a mobile money account in 2024, up 15 point increase from 22% in 2021.
Globally, 15% of adults had a mobile money account in 2024. In 2014, that share stood at just 2%.
Increased savings and credit
The spread of mobile money has also boosted formal savings. In low- and middle-income economies, the share of adults saving formally increased by 22 points, growing from 17% in 2011 to 40% in 2024.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, where formal savings increased by 12 points between 2021 and 2024 to 35% of adults, the share of adults who saved formally using a mobile money account was much larger than in other regions.
In 2024, 23% of adults saved formally using a mobile money account, twice the share in 2021. In Latin America and the Caribbean, 19% of adults saved formally using a mobile money account, four times the share of adults in these economies who saved this way in 2021.
Mobile money accounts are also becoming a dominant source of formal credit in some economies. In Kenya, the region’s pioneer in mobile money, 32% of adults, or 86% of formal borrowers, borrowed from their mobile money providers in 2024, including 25% of adults who borrowed only in this way.
In both Ghana and Uganda, 22% of adults, or 74% and 76% of formal borrowers, respectively, borrowed from mobile money providers, with virtually all of them borrowing only from mobile money providers.
Globally, 9% saved formally using a mobile money account in 2024. This includes 4% who saved using only a mobile money account and 5% who saved using both a mobile money account and an account at a bank or similar financial institution.
Increased adoption of digital payments
Digital payments have also seen increased adoption. In 2024, 61% of adults in low- and middle-income economies, or 82% of account owners, made or received a digital payment. This marks a 27 point increase from 2014.
Use of digital merchant payments, or payments made by retail customers to businesses in stores or online, also grew, increasing from 35% of adults in 2021 to 42% in 2024. East Asia and Pacific continued to lead the world with a nearly 70% penetration rate, followed by Europe and Central Asia with more than 50%, and Latin America and the Caribbean with more than 40%.
The switch to digital payments offers opportunities to offer funding to small businesses, which often struggle to access credit. In particular, digital transaction records can help small-scale merchants demonstrate cash flows to secure loans, bringing funding opportunities to those who lack traditional credit histories.
Among self employed individuals in low- and middle-income economies, 15% borrowed for business purposes in 2024, though most did so informally.
More broadly, only about a quarter of adults in these economies used formal credit in 2024. An additional 35% relied on informal sources such as family or friends.
This highlights the need for better access to responsible, formal credit options and the potential of cash flow-based lending models that use digital payment histories to assess creditworthiness.
Emerging risks
But increased digitalization and mobile finance adoption also bring risks. Of the 900 million adults in low- and middle-income economies who use mobile money accounts, only three-quarters use passwords to protect their phones. In Sub-Saharan Africa, only about half of the region’s 300 million mobile money account owners do so. This leaves many of these users vulnerable to theft.
Financial crime is also a concern. Nearly one in five phone owners in low- and middle-income economies reported receiving a text or SMS message from someone they did not know asking for money. Though only a small percentage said they sent money in response, scam prevalence poses nevertheless a risk to adults with digitally-enabled accounts.
Featured image by EyeEm on Freepik
