New Delhi: NITI Aayog, in collaboration with TransUnion CIBIL and MicroSave Consulting (MSC), released a new report titled “From Borrowers to Builders: Women’s Role in India’s Financial Growth Story” on 3 March.
The report, launched by NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, highlights a significant increase in credit awareness among women, with 27 million actively monitoring their credit as of December 2024—marking a 42 per cent rise from the previous year.
Subrahmanyam underscored the importance of financial access in fostering women’s entrepreneurship, stating that the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is working to build an inclusive ecosystem that enhances financial literacy, access to credit, and market linkages.
The CEO of NITI Aayog also announced the establishment of the Financing Women Collaborative (FWC) under WEP, inviting financial institutions to join the initiative in addressing structural barriers and promoting tailored financial products for women.
Anna Roy, Principal Economic Advisor at NITI Aayog and Mission Director of WEP, emphasized that women’s entrepreneurship is a key driver for employment generation and economic growth.
She noted that supporting women-led businesses could create job opportunities for 150 to 170 million people, boosting female workforce participation.
The report further reveals that women now account for 19.43 per cent of the total self-monitoring credit base, up from 17.89 per cent in 2023. Notably, credit monitoring is rising faster in non-metro regions (48 per cent growth) than in metro areas (30 per cent growth).
Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Telangana collectively account for 49 per cent of all self-monitoring women, with the southern region leading at 10.2 million.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh have recorded the highest growth rates in active women borrowers over the past five years.
Since 2019, women’s share in business loan origination has increased by 14 per cent, and their share in gold loans has grown by 6 per cent, making up 35 per cent of business borrowers by December last year.
However, challenges such as credit aversion, inadequate banking experiences, and issues with collateral remain. With rising credit awareness and improved scores, financial institutions now have an opportunity to introduce gender-smart financial products, further empowering women in India’s financial landscape.
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