In a rapidly digitizing country, Digital Financial Services (DFS) hold the promise of bringing financial inclusion to the last mile. Through the use of DFS, vulnerable and marginalized groups can reduce the risk and cost of using cash, and increase their access to a suite of financial services that would have been otherwise unavailable, or difficult to obtain, such as credit, savings, insurance, and pension. This paper provides an overview of the policy environment regulating digital finance in India as well as presents high-level statistics on the level of digitization across population segments in the country. It then moves on to describe the digital readiness, current usage of digital financial services, and specific issues and solutions for three vulnerable and marginalized groups with high digitization potential: women, micro-entrepreneurs, and domestic migrants. This is complemented by insights drawn from LEAD at Krea University’s primary research on these topics. Finally, the paper provides recommendations to accelerate the penetration of digital financial services among vulnerable groups. These include monitoring the implementation of recently introduced policies on data privacy, grievance redressal, and KYC simplification. It is also recommended to develop customized digital financial services that address the unique needs and profiles of vulnerable groups, such as those specifically analysed in this paper.

在一个快速数字化的国家，数字金融服务 (DFS) 有望将普惠金融带到最后一英里。通过使用 DFS，弱势和边缘化群体可以降低使用现金的风险和成本，并增加他们获得一系列原本无法获得或难以获得的金融服务的机会，例如信贷、储蓄、保险、和养老金。本文概述了印度监管数字金融的政策环境，并提供了有关该国各人口群体数字化水平的高级统计数据。然后继续描述数字化准备情况、数字金融服务的当前使用情况，以及针对三个具有高度数字化潜力的弱势和边缘化群体的具体问题和解决方案：女性、微型企业家、和国内移民。来自 Krea 大学关于这些主题的主要研究的 LEAD 的见解补充了这一点。最后，本文提出了加快数字金融服务在弱势群体中渗透的建议。其中包括监督最近出台的有关数据隐私、申诉处理和 KYC 简化政策的实施情况。还建议开发定制的数字金融服务，以满足弱势群体的独特需求和特征，例如本文专门分析的那些。其中包括监督最近出台的有关数据隐私、申诉处理和 KYC 简化政策的实施情况。还建议开发定制的数字金融服务，以满足弱势群体的独特需求和特征，例如本文专门分析的那些。其中包括监督最近出台的有关数据隐私、申诉处理和 KYC 简化政策的实施情况。还建议开发定制的数字金融服务，以满足弱势群体的独特需求和特征，例如本文专门分析的那些。