According to the World Bank’s latest Global Findex 2025 report, one out of every three Indians has a bank account that hasn’t been used in the past 12 months.
This means the account is considered “dormant.” Surprisingly, this number is seven times higher than the average in other developing countries. Let’s understand why this is happening.
Shocking Findings
1 in 3 Indians has a dormant bank account.
This was revealed in the World Bank’s Global Findex 2025 report.
What Is a Dormant Account?
If there is no transaction in a bank account for 12 months, it is marked as dormant.
How Many Accounts Are Dormant in India?
The report says 35% of bank accounts in India are inactive.
This is seven times more than the average in similar economies.
Jan Dhan Yojana’s Role
The Jan Dhan Yojana helped open crores of new bank accounts.
But many of these are not being used regularly.
Why Aren’t These Accounts Being Used?
About 50% of people said they don’t use their accounts because:
Banks are too far away,
They don’t trust banks, or
They don’t feel the need to use an account.
Around 40% said they don’t have enough money to keep in the account.
30% of people find it hard to manage accounts themselves.
Lack of digital knowledge is a major issue.
Women have, on average, 5% more inactive accounts than men.
Global Comparison
In other developing countries, only 13% of accounts are inactive.
In wealthy countries, nearly all accounts are active.
What Needs to Be Done?
Banks and the government must make banking easier for people.
There is a need for digital training and better financial education.
