The financial inclusion of women in 5 charts

One billion women – more than 40% of the women around the world – don’t have access to formal financial services, according to Global Findex.

The gender finance gap remains at 9% in developing countries, although in some parts of the world it is much higher, according to the 2014 Global Findex data.

Women are 20% less likely than men to have a bank account and 17% less likely to have borrowed money formally.

How financially included are women in the world?

Focusing on Universal Financial Access by 2020 in 25 Countries

To reach financial inclusion, the World Bank Group and partners are focusing on 25 countries where 73% of all financially excluded people live, under the Universal Financial Access by 2020 initiative.

The UFA2020 goal is to enable access for all adults, women and men alike, to a transaction account through which they can access other financial services -- such as savings, credit or insurance -- that can help improve the quality of their lives.

The following 4 charts explain how financially included women are in those 25 countries, according to Findex data.

Percentage of women with accounts in the 25 UFA2020 countries

Women borrow money mostly from family and friends

Women use borrowed money to pay for education, health and to invest in their farms or businesses

The goal of the World Bank’s Universal Financial Access by 2020 initiative is to have an account for every individual, not every household, which is important for women’s benefit and economic participation, according to Douglas Pearce, the World Bank Group’s Lead on Financial Inclusion. When women participate in the financial system, there is higher economic growth, reduced inequalities, and greater physical and social well-being.

Being able to save money, receive remittances safely, or get credit to start or grow a business can improve women’s lives and the lives of their families since women invest more in health, education and other ways that benefit their offspring.