Key takeaways
- Mobile money uptake rose from 58.4% of Zambian adults in 2020 to 76.1% in 2025, and is the main driver behind formal financial inclusion reaching 76.4%, per the 2025 FinScope Survey.
- Uptake of other formal financial services lags far behind: banking at 30.1%, insurance at 10.4%, pensions at 14.6% and capital market products at 13.8%.
- Zambia’s financial health score improved to 39.1% from 13.6% in 2020, but remains below the survey’s 51% benchmark.
- 55.9% of women and 51.4% of men say they are very worried about meeting medical costs after a serious illness or accident.
- Informal finance remains widely used alongside mobile money: informal inclusion stands at 52.0%, and 48.3% of adults use both formal and informal services.
- The next stage should turn mobile wallets into gateways for savings, insurance, credit and investment, backed by better data on how accounts are actually used.
Mobile money has become Zambia’s clearest financial inclusion success story. According to the 2025 FinScope Survey, uptake rose from 58.4 percent of adults in 2020 to 76.1 percent in 2025. Over the same period, formal financial inclusion increased from 61.3 percent to 76.4 percent, with mobile money identified as the main driver.
That growth matters. People can now send and receive money without travelling to a bank branch. Families can support relatives across long distances, traders can receive payments from customers, and households can pay bills or buy airtime from a phone. These functions save time, reduce the risks of carrying cash and make transactions possible in places where conventional banking remains limited.
The next question is what happens after access has been created. Are people using mobile money mainly to transfer and withdraw funds, or is the mobile wallet also helping them save, borrow, manage emergencies and build assets?
The published FinScope topline findings cannot answer that question fully. They show the proportion of adults using different financial services, but they do not provide a detailed breakdown of how mobile money users use their mobile wallets. And we should not assume that having a mobile wallet means the person is saving, borrowing or protecting themselves against risk.
The wider figures give us reason to look more closely. Banking service uptake stands at 30.1 percent, insurance at 10.4 percent, pension services at about 14.6 percent and capital market products at 13.8 percent. These categories may overlap with mobile money because some products can now be accessed through the phone. Even so, the gap between mobile money uptake and the uptake of other products suggests that access to a payment channel has spread much faster than access to a wider range of financial tools.
This line of thinking matters because financial well-being depends on more than moving money. A household also needs ways to keep part of its income aside, respond to an illness or loss of income, obtain suitable credit and prepare for future expenses. Mobile money can support some of these functions, but a basic mobile money account does not automatically provide them.
The 2025 survey places Zambia’s financial health score at 39.1 percent. Financial health measures people’s ability to manage everyday finances, cope with risks and invest in their livelihoods and future. The score has improved sharply from 13.6 percent in 2020, but it remains below the survey’s 51 percent benchmark. At the same time, 55.9 percent of women and 51.4 percent of men report being very worried about meeting medical costs after a serious illness or accident. And the concern about having enough money for old age is even higher.
These figures do not prove that mobile money has failed. Financial well-being is affected by income, employment, prices, debt and many other factors that a payment service cannot solve. They do show why mobile money should not be judged by uptake alone. A person may use a mobile money account regularly and still have no emergency savings, insurance, affordable credit or long-term investment.
Further, use of formal financial services remains uneven. Mobile money reaches far more adults than banking, insurance, pension and capital market products. These figures do not show exactly how each account is used, but they suggest that access to mobile money has not automatically led to wider use of savings, credit, insurance or investment products.
In all of this, informal finance remains important. The FinScope reports that informal financial inclusion rose to 52.0 percent, while 48.3 percent of adults used both formal and informal services. People may use mobile money for speed and convenience, then rely on a chilimba, village bank or savings group for disciplined saving, small loans and support during emergencies. This may be a practical decision to use each service for what it does best.
The next stage should build on the reach that already exists. Mobile money accounts could become stronger gateways to flexible savings, small-value insurance, responsible credit and simple investment products. These services must suit irregular incomes and be supported by clear charges, reliable systems, strong consumer protection and straightforward ways to resolve failed transactions.
Better measurement is equally important. Zambia needs to know how many accounts are active, how often they are used, which services users access and whether those services help them cope with shocks and plan ahead. Account numbers are useful, but they do not show the full value users receive.
Mobile money has changed how Zambians send and receive money, and that achievement is real. The question for the next phase is whether the same channel can also help more users save, build assets and protect themselves against financial shocks. Its wider value will depend not only on how easily people can move money, but on whether it improves their financial well-being.
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