Use of Financial Services by the Unbanked and Underbanked and the Potential for Mobile Financial Services Adoption

The increased use of mobile devices coupled with the evolution of technologies that enable consumers to conduct financial transactions using mobile phones has the potential to change how consumers manage their finances. Innovations in financial service technologies may also help foster access and inclusion in the mainstream financial system for unbanked or underbanked consumers. Using data collected through the Board’s Survey of Consumers and Mobile Financial Services, this article examines the characteristics of unbanked and underbanked consumers, their current use of mobile financial services, and the potential for mobile banking and payments to better integrate these consumers into the financial mainstream.