Taiwan has outperformed global averages in multiple financial inclusion categories, a report released on Monday by the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) said.
Financial inclusion is a concept adopted by the UN in the 2000s that refers to ensuring that all members of society have equal access to responsible and sustainable financial services.
Although it covers the availability of services for the general population, it is also aimed at making sure more vulnerable members of society, including the elderly, people with disabilities and lower-income households, have equal access to financial services.
Photo: CNA
The report, based on last year’s data, showed that Taiwan has 165 ATMs per 100,000 adults, more than triple the global average of 52.5, and 17 bank branches per 100,000 adults, also higher than the global average of 16.2, the commission said in a statement.
Mobile payment usage in Taiwan reached nearly 5.62 million transactions, well above the global average of 4.72 million, the report said.
The share of adults with a bank account in Taiwan stood at 93.3 percent, and 81.6 percent used digital payments — both notably higher than the global averages of 76.2 percent and 64 percent respectively, the report said.
Among the FSC’s metrics for disadvantaged groups were statistics for microinsurance and small-amount whole life insurance.
The availability of these products has grown steadily in the past few years, with the number of people covered by microinsurance in Taiwan reaching 1.89 million last year, and active small-amount whole life insurance policies totaling 1.19 million, the FSC said.
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