Press Release – IMF Releases the 2025 Financial Access Survey Results

IMF News, October 29, 2025

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The Financial Access Survey (FAS) was established in 2009 and is described as the most comprehensive annual supply-side database on financial access and use.
In 2025, 163 economies reported data, up from 158 in 2024.
The 2025 database features 121 data series spanning from 2004 to 2024.
The 2025 FAS release is accompanied by the report titled "Financial Access Survey: Fintech, a Catalyst for Financial Services Access, Innovation and Growth."

Digital transactions (mobile money, mobile and internet banking) increased from 55 transactions per adult in 2017 to 251 per adult by 2024.
Regional patterns:
- Sub-Saharan Africa experienced especially strong growth in mobile money, bringing millions of previously unbanked people into the formal financial system without requiring traditional bank accounts.
- Mobile money accounts are growing faster than traditional deposit accounts across Sub-Saharan Africa and have exceeded traditional banking in multiple economies.
Digital payments and remittances:
- Digital flows in remittances rose from 13% in 2019 to 46% by 2024.
- Digital payments offer rural households secure ways to save money, transfer funds, and pay bills.

Industry transaction values cited:
- Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services reached $350 billion in transaction value in 2024.
- Peer-to-peer and marketplace lending facilitated $62 billion in transactions in 2024.
Market and inclusion impacts:
- In Sub-Saharan Africa, fintech lending targeting micro and small enterprises surged from 13% to 88% of overall fintech funding between 2020 and 2023 (CGAP data cited).
- In emerging markets, fintech lenders are increasingly serving retail borrowers previously excluded from traditional finance, with significant portions of loan portfolios directed toward young and rural populations.
- In some advanced economies, fintech companies have surpassed traditional financial institutions in issuing unsecured personal loans.

Correlation between literacy and adoption:
- FAS data reveal a strong correlation between literacy levels and successful adoption of digital financial services; countries with stronger financial and digital skills show higher usage.
Key vulnerabilities and risks:
- Low literacy combined with poor infrastructure, high costs, and complex regulations increases vulnerability to over-indebtedness, predatory lending, fraud, and identity theft.
- BNPL products can obscure the true cost of borrowing because they are unsecured and often absent from credit registries.
Gender disparities in financial access and use:
- Women’s outstanding deposit amounts are at 64 percent of men’s globally.
- Women’s loan balances are at 46 percent of men’s globally.
Policy implications:
- Without improved financial education, clear regulations, and robust cybersecurity measures, fintech-related risks could undermine fintech’s benefits.

Pilot exercises in 2024 and 2025 tested over 100 new indicators across:
- e-money, e-wallets, mobile money-enabled loans and deposits, peer-to-peer lending, equity crowdfunding, and neobanks.
Countries contributing notably to the pilots: Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Kosovo, and Saudi Arabia.
Selected indicators from these pilots will be incorporated into regular FAS reporting in the coming years to equip policymakers with enhanced monitoring tools.
These efforts complement the G20 Data Gaps Initiative-3 Recommendation 12 on fintech-enabled financial inclusion.

Source: IMF Press Release – "IMF Releases the 2025 Financial Access Survey Results", October 29, 2025.