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The GSMA’s ‘State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2023’ has revealed that the adoption of mobile money services worldwide is growing at a faster rate than previously anticipated.

The report, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, shows that the number of registered mobile money accounts increased by 13% year-on-year from 1.4 billion in 2021 to 1.6 billion in 2022.

Daily transactions exceeded the amount predicted in 2021, reaching $3.45 billion in 2022, and the total transaction value grew by an impressive 22%Year-over-Year (YoY) to $1.26 trillion.

The growth rate is significant as it took the industry 17 years to reach the first 800 million customers, but it has taken only five years to reach the next 800 million.

The report emphasizes the crucial role of mobile money in providing affordable financial services to underserved communities, with 315 live mobile money deployments across the world currently in operation, driven by peer-to-peer transfers and cash-in/cash-out transactions.

Head of Mobile for Development at GSMA, Max Cuvellier welcomes the continued growth of mobile money worldwide, which has provided millions of unbanked and underserved people in low- and middle-income countries access to digital financial services for the first time.

However, the report suggests that there is still a long way to go to bring these services to over a billion unbanked people worldwide, and governments worldwide must develop enabling policies that support mobile money deployments to further boost the growth of this crucial ecosystem.

During 2022, mobile money-enabled international remittances grew by 28% year on year – to $22 billion.

This growth trend continued in 2022, albeit at a slower rate, as many senders favoured mobile money for its efficiency, speed, safety and cost-effectiveness.

The report suggests that mobile money has the potential to drive economic growth and resilience, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, and will continue to play a critical role in improving the lives of people in vulnerable communities.

The report also highlights the prevalence of the gender gap in mobile money use, with mobile phone ownership remaining the main driver of this gap, although cultural norms and barriers also prevent women from adopting mobile money.