Women with their own bank accounts benefit from having an independent say over how their money gets spent, as well as the ability to receive it, store it, spend it, save it and invest it safely. But as recently as 2011, there was no single source of data that differentiated how women and men access and use financial services.
This data gap was a problem because it meant that the world didn’t have concrete information on the unique challenges women face accessing or using financial services. Policymakers and financial services providers had no metrics to use to benchmark or develop programs and products to meet women’s needs.
Measurements became available when the Global Findex team at the World Bank partnered with Gallup to develop the first global-scale survey on financial inclusion. Since its first edition in 2011, the Global Findex survey has produced gender-disaggregated data on financial account access, use across a range of products, and financial wellbeing.
