According to new data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s biennial National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, the 5.6 million underbanked U.S. households represents the lowest percentage (at 4.2%) since the survey began in 2009 ("underbanked" households are those without a bank or credit union account). The highest number recorded was in 2011, when it hit 8.2%.
The FDIC survey reported that 19.0 million (14.2% of U.S. households) were underbanked in 2023, meaning they had a bank or credit union account but primarily used nonbank products and services.
Source: 2023 FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households
The same study also showed that underbanked U.S. households are more likely to hold cryptocurrencies than those utilizing traditional bank services (see chart).
Read full FDIC study and PYMNTS coverage.
Unbanked and underbanked consumers often use cash instead of credit/ debit cards or checks for everyday payments. According to the Fed's 2023 diary study, this could be as many as 19% of consumers making a retail purchase. FinMed Partners recently helped launch a retail cash-in solution for medical bill payment. This will increase the ability of cash-paying patients to pay all or a portion of medical bill balances due at the largest U.S. retail cash-in network. Contact us at info@finmedpartners.com if you would like to review cash preference data from a survey of 2,000 consumers, and learn more about increasing patient collections yield by adding retail cash-in to your patient payment options.