From Digital Payments to Financial Inclusion: The Challenges Ahead
Digital payments are currently being envisioned as a gateway to financial inclusion for the poor and marginalised in India. In this article, Indradeep Ghosh, Executive Director, Dvara Research, examines the rationale for such a vision. He argues that the penetration of digital payments remains low for the poor and marginalised, partly because of unfavourable economics and partly because digital payments interfaces are not well designed to suit this segment. If India can overcome these two hurdles, then digital payments can indeed become more common among the poor and marginalised, and thereby catalyse much wider and deeper financial inclusion in India than has hitherto been possible.
