News: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said that the Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) has improved to 67 in March 2025 from 64.2 in March 2024.
About Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index)
- It is a composite, annual measure to objectively assess and monitor the extent of financial inclusion across India.
- It captures the penetration and usage of financial services—banking, investments, insurance, postal, and pension sectors—for all individuals and households in the country.
- Developed by: Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
- Launched on: August 17, 2021
- Parameters and weightage: The index comprises three broad parameters — access, usage, and quality, having weight 35 per cent, 45 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively.
- The weight of each parameter consists of various dimensions, which are computed based on a number of indicators.
- Base year: The Index has been constructed without any base year as it reflects cumulative efforts of all stakeholders over the years towards financial inclusion.
- Range: The index ranges from 0 (complete exclusion) to 100 (full inclusion).
- Feature: A unique feature of the index is the quality parameter which captures the quality aspect of financial inclusion as reflected by financial literacy, consumer protection, and inequalities and deficiencies in services.
Note:
- The annual FI-Index for the period ending March 2021 was 53.9 as against 43.4 for the period ending March 2017.
- Now it has improved to 67 in March 2025 from 64.2 in March 2024.
