Why digital literacy is a critical gateway towards financial inclusion

The pandemic radically changed the digital landscape. What was just on the agenda for most companies, became a prerogative for efficient business. With the world getting holed up indoors and workplaces shifting at homes, digital efficiency became imperative and the rest is history. With digital acceleration, a lot of businesses and sectors flourished which was great news for economies all around the world. A survey conducted by Mckinsey found that the pandemic all around the world brought about years of change in businesses and accelerated the adoption of technology in leaps and bounds in just couple of years. The data revolution disrupted the financial sector in an unexpected way and paved the way for a more practical, accountable and effectual system. One of the sectors that has not just become a big priority for the government but has shown the most promise for the changing times is the FinTech sector. With emphasis towards a cashless and paperless economy, the banking industry has undergone a sea-change and the FinTech sector is one of the biggest beneficiaries of this transformation.  Many industries today are benefitting from FinTech such as education, NGOS, retail banking, education etc. The rise of the fintech sector India is at the forefront of the digital financial change and the emerging trends of FinTech has been evident in paperless lending, mobile banking, secure payment gateways, mobile wallets and many other changing concepts of financial independence. Increased mobile penetration, improved internet access and high-speed connectivity have been few of the factors that have helped in hastening the development and increase of fintech sector. The FinTech sector’s biggest mandate has been to serve the unbanked, underserved and financially marginalised population of rural India. But before they can help in the entire financial inclusion mandate, what the FinTechs are doing is getting rural India digitally literate. That is the need of the hour, more than ever. The FinTech revolution has also had the government prioritise schemes UPIs, payment wallets, digital payment tools and apps. ‘Digidhan Mission’ by the government is encouraging all stakeholders to create and promote awareness about digital payments. The government in its bid to reform the UPI landscape has committed to provide UPI on all feature-based phones in rural India. The government has also dedicated its commitment to creating Digital Rupee by year 2025. All these facilities are geared up towards bolstering the rural landscape of India and bringing them into the folds of a financially inclusive society. Doorstep banking is the way forward Some fintech companies have understood that doorstep banking is the key to financial inclusion and any kind of financial independence can be achieved only by digital literacy. By creating opportunities such as mobile vans that are reaching out to the villagers and rural India with equipped vehicles to help them with banking facilities is opening up doors to a better lifestyle. This proactive digital distribution is enabling enhanced life goals amongst hitherto neglected sections of our country. DCCB got sanctions from NABARD and launched mobile ATM vans which has been a very popular with the farmers community, who till now had been a marginalised and underserved group. With illiteracy rife, the mobile ATM has been a boon. With provision to withdraw cash and powered by solar panels on the roof, this is revolutionary and breaks down the barriers of literacy or lack of education. This is motivating the villagers or people in rural India towards literacy so that they can know and understand more about the wide range of financial benefits and services that are available to them, this simple initiative of bringing together technology and an unmet need is giving hopes to millions of a better life and a better standard of living. With newer technologies like blockchain, some fintech companies are able to create a framework that fosters financial empowerment by orientating the underserved population about managing their finances and giving them full control of their life. With strategic partnerships with the government and rural banks, the FinTech sector can help achieve the national goal of increased financial inclusion for most parts of the country. The author is founder and CEO, XPay Life. Views are personal. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.