NITI Aayog has unveiled a new report titled “From Borrowers to Builders: Women’s Role in India’s Financial Growth Story,” highlighting the significant increase in women’s participation in the financial sector. Published in collaboration with TransUnion CIBIL and MicroSave Consulting (MSC), the report reveals a 42% year-over-year growth in women borrowers, with 27 million women actively monitoring their credit as of December 2024.
The report underscores the critical role of access to finance in empowering women entrepreneurs. During the launch, NITI Aayog CEO Shri B.V.R. Subrahmanyam emphasized the government’s commitment to fostering an inclusive ecosystem that promotes financial literacy, access to credit, mentorship, and market linkages. He called for collective efforts from financial institutions to design products tailored to women’s needs and address structural barriers.
Anna Roy, Principal Economic Advisor at NITI Aayog and Mission Director of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP), highlighted the potential of women’s entrepreneurship to create employment opportunities and drive equitable economic growth. The report shows that women’s share of the total self-monitoring base increased to 19.43% in December 2024, with significant growth in non-metro regions.
The report also highlights that women’s share in business loan origination has increased by 14% since 2019, and their share in gold loans has grown by 6%. By December 2024, women accounted for 35% of business borrowers. Despite these gains, challenges such as credit aversion, poor banking experiences, barriers to credit readiness, and issues with collateral and guarantors persist.
The report calls for financial institutions to leverage rising credit awareness and improved scores among women to offer gender-smart financial products. With these insights, the NITI Aayog report provides a roadmap for enhancing women’s participation in the financial sector and accelerating India’s economic growth.
