NITI Aayog’s recent report, From Borrowers to Builders: Women’s Role in India’s Financial Growth Story, highlights a 42% increase in women actively monitoring their credit scores.

Key Findings of the Report

• Rise in Credit Awareness: As of December 2024, 27 million women were actively monitoring their credit.
• Increased Women’s Share in Credit Self-Monitoring: Grew to 19.43% in 2024 from 17.89% in 2023.

• Regional Trends:
  • Growth in non-metro regions (48%) outpaced metro areas (30%).
  • Southern states led with 10.2 million women self-monitoring credit.
  • Northern and central states (Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh) saw the highest CAGR in active women borrowers.
• Women’s Participation in Loans
  • Business Loans: Women’s share in business loan origination increased by 14% since 2019.
  • Gold Loans: Women’s share grew by 6%, with 35% of business borrowers being women by December 2024.

Reasons for Rising Female Participation in the Financial Sphere

• Female Labour Force Participation: Women are increasingly entering formal and informal sectors, contributing to economic productivity.
  • The Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for women aged 15 years and above has risen from 22 percent in 2017-18 to 40.3 percent in 2023-24.
  • The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for women has increased from 23.3 percent to 41.7 percent in the same period,
  • Example: The advent of platforms like Swiggy, Zomato, Urban Company etc has enabled women to participate in the gig economy, offering flexible work opportunities and financial independence.
• Rise In Women Entrepreneurs: According to the World Bank, women-owned businesses in India generate an estimated 8 million job opportunities, underscoring their substantial importance.
  • According to a 2021 report from the NITI Aayog, women entrepreneurs command a 20 per cent share of all enterprises in India.
• Financial Inclusion: Initiatives like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) have led to the increase in women-owned bank accounts and integrated more women into the formal financial system, making them aware of credit scores.
  • A total of 54.58 crore JanDhan accounts have been opened till 15.01.2025, of which 30.37 crore (55.7%) belong to women.
• Growth of Digital Financial Tools
  • Ease of Access: Platforms like CIBIL, Experian have made it easier for women to check their credit scores online.
  • Mobile Banking and Apps: The proliferation of mobile banking apps and fintech platforms offering free credit score checks has empowered women to monitor their credit scores regularly.
• Financial Independence: As more women earn and manage their own incomes, they are taking proactive steps to build and monitor their credit profiles.
• Education and Employment: Higher education levels and increased employment opportunities have made women more financially savvy.
  • Example: India’s higher education has seen strong growth over the last decade, with a 38.5% rise in female enrolment.
    • Women with higher education are more likely to understand financial planning, savings, and investment strategies.

Challenges In Women’s Financial Participation

• Gender Wage Gap: Women often earn less than their male counterparts for the same work, impacting savings and investment potential.
  • The Oxfam India Discrimination Report 2022 highlighted the gender pay gap in India, with women facing bias in recruitment and pay across the country.
• Limited Access to Credit: Many women, particularly in rural areas, struggle with securing loans due to lack of collateral and financial literacy.
  • Example: 79% of women owned businesses are self-financed, with only 7% of MSME credit directed to women.
• Societal Norms and Biases: Deep-rooted cultural norms and patriarchal attitudes discourage women from taking leadership roles or engaging in high-risk financial decisions.
• Increasing Prosperity: As household incomes rise, women – particularly in urban areas, are leaving the workforce because they no longer need to engage in physically demanding labour.
  • Improved financial stability enables some women to prioritise their family responsibilities over pursuing employment.
• Work-Life Balance: The dual burden of professional and domestic responsibilities often limits women’s career growth.
• Credit Aversion and Poor Banking Experiences: Many women hesitate to seek credit due to fear of debt, high-interest rates, and limited financial literacy. 
  • Additionally, complex loan procedures, and gender bias discourage them from actively engaging with formal financial institutions.

Way Forward

• Expand Women’s Access to Business Loans
  • Implement policies for affordable credit and reduced interest rates.
  • Collect sex-disaggregated financial data to inform better policy decisions.
  • Strengthen credit guarantee schemes to reduce collateral requirements.
• Develop Gender-Smart Financial Products
  • Design financial products that address women’s lifecycle needs, social norms, and structural barriers.
  • Promote customized loan offerings, flexible repayment options, and insurance solutions for women entrepreneurs.
• Reimagine Credit Risk Assessment: Leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) and big data analytics to create unbiased, gender-inclusive credit assessment models.
  • Reduce reliance on traditional collateral-based evaluations and explore alternative creditworthiness indicators.
• Enhance Credit Readiness: Promote digital transactions, financial literacy, and digital bookkeeping for better credit management.
  • Support business formalization to improve women’s access to mainstream financial services and government incentives.

Conclusion

Women are not just beneficiaries of India’s financial growth story; they are active contributors and drivers of this growth.

• Strengthening their financial inclusion is key to achieving the Viksit Bharat goal of a 70% female workforce participation by 2047, ensuring inclusive and sustainable economic progress.

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