This presentation gives an overview of the findings from CGAP's nationally representative survey of financial inclusion in Ghana 2015, with an emphasis on the role played by mobile financial services.

1. FII Ghana 2015:
The state of financial inclusion
and mobile money in Ghana
Peter Zetterli
December 2015

2. About CGAP
Think tank housed in the World Bank
dedicated to expanding financial inclusion.
Supported by 30+ members, incl. bilateral
and multilateral donors, private
foundations.
Mission to understand and disseminate
significant innovations in the inclusion field
to practitioners, policy makers, regulators
and donors active in the space.
Active in Ghana since 2011, focused on
the mobile financial services market.
About FinScope
Survey developed by FinMark Trust to
measure levels of access and uptake of
financial products and services (both
formal and informal).
Ghana FinScope 2010 results form the
basis for analysis of trend changes in this
presentation.
While FinMark Trust has been helpful to
this exercise, FinMark Trust is not in any
way responsible for the analysis or any
interpretations thereof.

3. Financial inclusion in Ghana
3

4. The financial landscape in Ghana has developed since 2010
Access Strand in FII 2015 vs FinScope 2010
Note: Shows access to services, not accounts. Minor differences exist between surveys.
34%
36%
7%
22%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded

5. Access to formal financial services has risen by nearly half
Comparing FinScope 2010 and FII 2015
41%
58%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Formally included Informal only Excluded
41% expansion of access

6. The main driver is rapid growth in nonbank formal services
Access to these services tripled in five years
34%
36%
7%
22%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
3x

7. 34%
36% 7% 8%
7%
7%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank MM only NBFI & MM NBFI only Informal only Excluded
Half of this is directly attributable to mobile money
The other half is thanks to both mobile money and other nonbank formal
Included only by MM

8. Ghanaians have roughly the same level of access to banking,
mobile money and other formal financial services
Note: Slide shows access to services, not accounts. FinScope definitions are used.

9. Looking strictly at accounts, banking still contributes more
But mobile money accounts have substantially outgrown NBFI accounts
of Ghanaian adults have registered
accounts with a formal financial institution
34%
have bank accounts
have nonbank financial
institution accounts
have mobile money accounts
Note: FII definitions are used. NBFIs exclude credit-only institutions.
48%
20% 8%

10. Source:InterMediaFIITrackerSurveys2014-2015.
Ghanaians are highly banked compared to peers
14%
16%
21%
28%
34%
Uganda Rwanda Tanzania Kenya Ghana
Share of adults who have a registered bank account (%)

11. Source:InterMediaFIITrackerSurveys2014-2015.
…while mobile money in Ghana is still developing
Share of adults who have a registered mobile money account (%)
63%
38%
33%
23%
20%
Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Ghana

12. But banking has expanded only very marginally since 2010
34%
36%
7%
22%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded

13. The share with only informal access has also changed little
34%
36%
7%
22%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded

14. Financial exclusion has been reduced by almost half
But one in four Ghanaians are still excluded
34%
36%
7%
22%
15%
17%
44%
25%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
43% drop in exclusion

15. Financial inclusion has expanded fastest in more excluded areas
Access to formal financial services by region, 2010 vs 2015
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Upper West
Northern
Volta
Upper East
Brong Ahafo
Central
Western
Eastern
Ashanti
Greater Accra
2010 2015

16. Use of most commercial financial products has grown since 2010
The largest impact is on remittances
Share of adults using respective financial products (%)
Note: FinScope 2010 definitions are revised to match FII 2015 data. Insurance excludes NHIS
26%
45%
7%11%
24%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
Financial Inclusion Insights (2015)
21%
37%
9%5%
5%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
FinScope (2010)
Use of formal
remittance
products rose 5x
Use of insurance
products doubled
Use of credit
products fell
slightly
Transactional and
savings products
grew by 20-25%

17. The impact of MM in formalizing remittances is apparent
A less apparent, but also clear, impact on savings
23%
40%
6%11%
11%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
2015 without mobile money
26%
45%
7%11%
24%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
2015 with mobile money
2 / 3 of the
increase is
thanks to MM
2 / 3 of the
increase on
savings is
due to MM

18. Share of adults who use various financial products (%)
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
Total Banking ONLY
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Transactional
Savings
CreditInsurance
Remittance
Total Mobile Money ONLY
But the role of MM in the overall provision of formal financial
products and services is modest compared to banking

19. Summary of takeaways on inclusion in Ghana
Financial
inclusion has
expanded
substantially in
last five years
This is driven
by nonbank
formal, notably
mobile money
Banking is
comparatively
high but not
growing much
Lagging
regions are
catching up
faster

20. Vulnerable groups
22

21. 12%
18%
20%
25%
31%
30%
31%
12%
15%
15%
18%
20%
20%
20%
3%
5%
7%
6%
5%
7%
7%
Poor
Rural
Female
Total population
Male
Non-poor
Urban
Active bank account holders
Active MM account holders
Active NBFI account holders
Female, rural and poor Ghanaians are less likely to be using
any type of financial accounts with formal institutions
Share of sub groups with active financial accounts (%)
Note: Bars are cumulative and may reflect multiple responses
The poor are as likely to
be using MM accounts as
they are bank accounts

22. Financial inclusion has expanded particularly fast in rural areas
Rural access to formal financial services has doubled since 2010
26%
51%
18%
21%
55%
29%
2010
2015
Formally included Informal only Excluded
2x
Rural

23. Rural banking access has grown better than national average
Expanded by 30% since 2010
21%
27%
5%
24%
18%
21%
55%
29%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
Rural

24. …but again the real change is driven by nonbank formal
Access grew fivefold since 2010
21%
27%
5%
24%
18%
21%
55%
29%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
Rural
5x

25. 21%
27% 8% 8%
5%
8%
18%
21%
55%
29%
2010
2015
Bank MM only NBFI & MM NBFI only Informal only Excluded
Again thanks to a combination of mobile money and other
nonbank formal financial institutions
Included by MM
Rural

26. Strikingly, fewer urban Ghanaians report having bank accounts
However banking still represents 2/3 of formal inclusion
52%
43%
9%
22%
11%
13%
28%
22%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
17% drop
Urban

27. But rapid growth in nonbank formal is a counterweight
52%
43%
9%
22%
11%
13%
28%
22%
2010
2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded
2.5x
Urban

28. …as a result, urban inclusion still managed to expand
61%
65%
11%
13%
28%
22%
2010
2015
All formal Informal only Excluded
Urban

29. Access to formal financial services has grown slightly faster for
women than for men
37%
57%
18%
20%
45%
24%
2010
2015
Male
Female
45%
62%
12%
12%
43%
26%
2010
2015
Formally included Informal only Excluded

30. Women have less access to banks—and the gap is growing—but
nonbank formal has expanded their formal inclusion substantially
29%
31%
8%
26%
18%
20%
45%
24%
2010
2015
Male
Female
40%
43%
5%
19%
12%
12%
43%
26%
2010
2015
Banked Nonbank formal Informal only Excluded

31. 40%
43% 7% 7%
5%
5%
12%
12%
43%
26%
2010
2015
Bank MM only NBFI & MM NBFI only Informal only Excluded
Women are more likely to rely on all kinds of nonbank formal for
access than men are
Male
Female
29%
31% 8% 9%
8%
9%
18%
20%
45%
24%
2010
2015

32. Access to banks is the big distinguisher between the poor and
non-poor in formal inclusion
41%
21%
24%
20%
14%
23%
21%
36%
Non-poor
Poor
Banked NBFI only Informal only Excluded
1.7x0.5x

33. The poor / non-poor inclusion gap is smaller for mobile money
Inequity in active registered use of bank accounts is more than twice that for MM
30%
20%
12% 12%
Bank MM
Nonpoor Poor
2.3x

34. …as is the urban / rural gap
31%
19%
18%
15%
Bank MM
Urban Rural
2.7x

35. …and the gender gap
31%
20%20%
15%
Bank MM
Men Women
1.7x

36. But women are twice as likely to not have a phone and more
likely to need help to use it—not to mention use MM
4%
19%
12%
7%
27%
25%
Do not have a phone, borrow from
other people (% of total population)
Need help using mobile phone (% of
mobile phone users)
Need help making MM transactions (%
of MM users)
Males Females

37. 93%
87%
91%
71%
45%
19%
35%
15%
Non-poor women Poor women Non-poor women Poor women
Urban Rural
Own a mobile phone Own a DFS account
And poor women are less likely even than other women to have
phones and mobile accounts, especially in rural areas
Share of women who own mobile phones and DFS accounts (%)

38. The mobile money space
40

39. The market has been picking up speed for some time, growing at
2.5x per annum for the last couple of years
Source: CGAP estimates. Note: Shows accounts, not users. Includes non-MM DFS accounts.
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
4.0
4.5
5.0
Q1 2011 Q3 2011 Q1 2012 Q3 2012 Q1 2013 Q3 2013 Q1 2014 Q3 2014 Q1 2015 Q3 2015
Millions
Active DFS accounts, market wide (90 days)

40. A few statistics on the mobile money market right now
Source: Bank of Ghana, Nov 2015. Note: Shows accounts, not users. Excludes non-MM DFS accounts.
44,000active
MM agents
$100mMM wallet
balances
10mregistered
MM accounts
$900mtransacted
each month
4.4mactive
MM accounts
24mtransactions
each month

41. 70%
17%
10%
3%
MTN
Tigo
Airtel
Vodafone
MTN is the clear market leader—but also faces considerable
competition
Market shares of 90 day active mobile money accounts (%)
Source: Bank of Ghana, Nov 2015. Note: Shows accounts, not users.

42. Nearly half of active MM account holders also use a bank
account
Share of active users of bank and/or MM accounts who use either or both types (%)
51% 20% 29%
Bank only Bank and MM MM only

43. This is in line with evidence from peers that there is no
contradiction between banking and mobile money services
Share of active users of bank or MM accounts who use either or both types of accounts (%)
5%
30%
1%
21%
51%
37%
20%
45%
26%
20%
59%
58%
53%
54%
29%
Uganda
Tanzania
Kenya
Rwanda
Ghana
Bank only Bank & MM MM only

44. MM customers find service points (agents) more accessible than
customers of other financial institutions
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
MM agent ATM Bank branch MFI branch Credit Union
banch
Cooperative
branch
<1km from home 1-5km from home >5km from home
Proximity to service points (users of the respective financial institutions; %)

45. 11%
30%
9%
10%
This greater proximity is particularly evident in rural areas
Distance from the bank for*: Distance from agent for**:
Bank active users
Bank rural users
Less than 5 km More than 5 km
MM active users
MM rural users

46. This may be one explanation why MM is already more common
than banking in some more rural and remote regions
Ashanti
12%
Brong-Ahafo
15%
Central
16%
Eastern
16%
Greater Accra
13%
Northern
13%
Upper East
13%
Upper West
18%
Volta
21%
Western
16%
22%
19%
16%
13%
10%
MM active usage Bank account active usage
Ashanti
21%
Brong-Ahafo
18%
Central
20%
Eastern
23%
Greater Accra
27%
Northern
13%
Upper East
23%
Upper West
13%
Volta
19%
Western
14%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%

47. Mobile money accounts are also half as likely to be inactive
Share of adults with registered vs. active bank and MM accounts (%)
Note: Active is defined as having been used within the last 90 days. All figures are self reported.
34%
20%
25%
17%
Banks Mobile money
Registered Active
27%
dormant
13%
dormant

48. Mobile money is now arguably the most accessible form of
financial service
99% of
Ghanaians are
aware of at
least 1 provider
and 29% have
used MM
25% are
actively using
MM and 17%
are active
account users
There are over
40,000 active
MM agents in
Ghana today
71% of MM
users know of
a MM agent
<1km from
their home
This figure is for
banks 52% and
MFIs 32% of users

49. Broad takeaways

50. While Ghana is making great progress, a quarter of Ghanaians
remain excluded
Access Strand in FII 2015
Note: Figures show access to services, not accounts
36% 22% 17% 25%2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded

51. …and almost a fifth have to rely on informal financial services to
their financial access
Access Strand in FII 2015
Note: Figures show access to services, not accounts
36% 22% 17% 25%2015
Bank Non-bank formal Informal only Excluded

52. Banking is growing, but too slowly to be the main engine for
expanding financial inclusion
Share of adults with access to various financial services, 2010 vs. 2014
34%
0%
20%
36%
29% 29%
Bank MM Other formal
2010 2014

53. MM has great potential to keep expanding access, as evidenced
by the leading markets in East Africa
Share of all adults in Tanzania
Source: FinScope Tanzania
0% 1%
50%
54% 55%
27%
2006 2009 2013
MM users
Financially
excluded

54. Ghana has all the base conditions for MM to be successful
In fact conditions are better here than in the leading East African markets
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
% with required ID % with basic numeracy % own a mobile phone % ever send/receive SMS
Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Ghana

55. Phone ownership is very high, even in disadvantaged groups
Share of sub groups who own a mobile phone (%)
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
National Male Female Urban Rural Non-poor Poor Rural, poor
female
71%

56. 19%
22%
26%
28%
28%
30%
31%
33%
36%
78%
99%
100%
Downloaded a mobile phone application
Made a financial transaction
Used on-demand provider services
Downloaded music, video or games
Sent/received MMS
Used touchscreen
Used social networking
Used the Internet
Taken a photograph
Sent/received SMS
Received calls
Made calls
Ghanaians are fairly sophisticated mobile phone users
% of adults with access to mobile phones
Advanced
activities

57. …and also quite independent in their phone use
Most can transact without assistance, including 4 out of 5 MM users
% of those who ever performed a specific activity who can do so without help
93% 92% 91% 89% 87%
82% 82%
Internet Touchscreen MMS messages Downloading
music etc
Mobile
applications
Take photos Financial
transaction

58. Ghana’s regulatory environment for MM is steadily improving
Two landmark regulations promulgated in 2015
E-Money
Issuer
Guidelines
Agent
Guidelines

59. And the mobile money space is now quite competitive

60. Source:InterMediaFIITrackerSurveys2014-2015.
So there’s no reason not to expect Ghana to catch up with the
leading mobile money markets in East Africa
Share of adults who have a registered mobile money account (%)
63%
38%
33%
23%
20%
Kenya Tanzania Uganda Rwanda Ghana
7m
Ghanaians

61. This development is complementary to banking and should not
be seen as a threat to banks, as East Africa also shows
Bank vs MM accounts in Kenya, 2007-2013
Data source: Central Bank of Kenya

62. On the contrary, the expansion of formal accounts enables a
range of other services, many of which are powered by banks
The MFS ecosystem in TanzaniaAgriculture Water
Savings
Insurance
Merchant solutions
Credit
Energy
Mobile Money
Fara
ja
Insuran
ce farijika
Taxes and fees

63. A few things that we think should happen now
• Regulators need to stay abreast of the rapid developments in
the space in order both to enable new services and to
regulate them appropriately and protect customers’ interests.
• From a policy perspective, government should formulate a
vision for mobile financial services and the digital ecosystem
—not least how government itself should leverage MM.
• Banks should explore the many new opportunities that the
mobile channel opens up, to deliver a broader array of mobile
financial services in partnership with MM providers.
• MM providers must continue to improve reliability, build trust
and deliver real value to customers.

64. Advancing financial inclusion to improve the lives of the poor
www.cgap.org