A 2023 Finscope consumer survey report has revealed a decline in the country’s banking services.
Statistics indicate that the use of other formal (non-bank) financial services has risen from 18 percent in 2014 to 73 percent in 2023, primarily due to the use of mobile money.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi attributes the decline to the significant uptake of other formal financial products like mobile money.
Reserve Bank Governor Wilson Banda made the statement in Lilongwe during the joint launch of the 2023 Finscope Consumer Survey Report, the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion, and the Financial Sector Development Strategy.
Banda said the survey shows that efforts to improve financial inclusion have been successful, attributing the shift from commercial banks to non-bank services as evidence of this success.
Country Representative for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Malawi, Bernadette Mukonyora, said the research findings are a source of hope, noting that there are a few challenges that still require attention.
The launch was attended by officials from the Ministry of Finance, IFAD, the National Statistics Office (NSO), and Finnmark.
