Rural Women & UPI: Usage, Savings & Investments

New Delhi, Mar 5 (PTI) A significant percentage of women in rural and semi-urban areas use UPI at least once a week, primarily for everyday payments such as groceries, utility bills and mobile recharges, showcasing a growing shift towards digital payments, according to a report.

As per the sixth edition of the PayNearby Women Financial Index 2026, there is also growing awareness among women for investment and asset-linked products through assisted guidance, and about 38 per cent of women in rural and semi-urban areas use UPI at least once a week for daily essentials.

Additionally, the report highlighted the savings behaviour reflecting the growing financial discipline among women, with 85 per cent of women surveyed mentioning that they are the primary savers for the family.

Approximately 44 per cent express willingness to invest in gold-based savings products through small-ticket SIPs when supported at their local service point, indicating openness to new investment options, the report based on a survey of 10,000 women agents delivering digital and financial services in rural and semi-urban parts of the country said.

Alongside this, flexible small-ticket deposit products such as fixed deposits or recurring deposits, particularly those offering ease of withdrawal, receive strong preference, with 98 per cent of women indicating willingness to save through them, it said, adding that mutual funds as a category remain underpenetrated, with less than 10 per cent of women aware of them.


Cash withdrawal continues to be one of the most essential services for women, helping them manage household spending and maintain ready access to money when needed, it said.

About 54 per cent prefer biometric-based authentication for withdrawals, including face authentication, reflecting both comfort with familiar systems and trust in local service providers and the most common withdrawal range remains between Rs 1,000-2,500, it added.

At the same time, the report said, digital payments are steadily becoming part of routine transactions.

Insurance uptake stands at 26 per cent, with health, life and accident coverage emerging as the most preferred categories, it said, adding that while awareness remains higher than enrolment, adoption continues to expand gradually.

"We are witnessing more women independently managing their bank accounts, building disciplined monthly savings habits, and showing growing comfort with gold-based savings, insurance and formal credit," PayNearby MD and CEO Anand Kumar Bajaj said.

As familiarity with financial tools increases, trusted assisted models will continue to serve as the bridge, enabling women to move confidently from guided transactions to independent financial participation, he said.