What is Underbanked?

Underbanked refers to individuals who have access to a bank account, but who are often unable to use the bank's full services because of lack of income or other reasons. The underbanked often make use of alternative financial services like payday loans, money orders, and check-cashing services rather than traditional loans and credit cards. The "unbanked" (those without any access to banking services) are sometimes considered a distinct subset of the underbanked. It is a primary goal of sectors like FinTech, decentralized finance (DeFi), and blockchain to support the underbanked by achieving equitable financial inclusion globally.