> FIGURE 1.10

GO TO BOX 1.4 contrast, only about half those with such an account reported making a deposit or withdrawal in a typical month. But this average for developing economies conceals large differences across regions and economies. In South Asia a larger share reported making zero deposits or withdrawals in a typical month than reported making at least one such transaction—the only region where this was the case.

Globally, 15 percent of adults with an account at a financial institution—representing about 460 million people—reported making no deposit or withdrawal in the past 12 months and therefore have what can be considered a dormant account (figure 1.11).<sup>9</sup> This means not only that their account had no cash deposits or withdrawals, but also that it had no electronic wage deposits and no electronic payments or purchases. The dormancy rate in South Asia is especially high at 42 percent; the average across all other developing regions is less than 20 percent. India, with a dormancy rate of 43 percent, accounts for about 195 million of the 460 million adults with a dormant account around the world (box 1.4). In highincome OECD economies the dormancy rate is 5 percent.

<!-- Start of picture text --> Frequency of withdrawals by account holders<br>Adults with a financial institution account by number of withdrawals in<br>a typical month (%), 2014<br>0 20 40 60 80 100<br>East Asia & Pacific<br>Europe & Central Asia<br>High-income OECD economies<br>Latin America & Caribbean<br>Middle East<br>South Asia<br>Sub-Saharan Africa<br>3 or more 1–2 None<br><!-- End of picture text --> _Note:_ The categories do not sum to 100 percent because of “don’t know” and “refuse” answers. _Source:_ Global Findex database.

# FIGURE 1.11

Adults with an account by whether deposits or withdrawals made in the past year (%), 2014 <!-- Start of picture text --> 0 20 40 60 80 100<br>East Asia & Pacific<br>Europe & Central Asia<br>High-income OECD economies<br>Latin America & Caribbean<br>Middle East<br>South Asia<br>Sub-Saharan Africa<br>Made at least one deposit or withdrawal Did not make<br>any deposits<br>or withdrawals<br>Source: Global Findex database.<br><!-- End of picture text --> Should those with a dormant account be counted as banked? The Global Findex database relies on self-reported data on account ownership. All adults reporting that they have an account at a financial institution therefore understand themselves to be banked, even if they have made no transaction for the past 12 months. And while a dormant account by definition is not being used for payments or cash management, it may still fulfill the important function of providing a safe place for the account holder to store money.

Moreover, in some economies high dormancy rates might reflect the relatively greater convenience and lower cost of using alternative payment solutions. For example, while 37 percent of adults in Tanzania with an account at a financial institution reported having made no deposit or withdrawal in the past year, 62 percent of this group reported having made financial transactions using a mobile phone over that period. Finally, in some economies, including India, high dormancy rates may reflect a large number of newly opened accounts that have not yet been used.

> THE GLOBAL FINDEX DATABASE 18