underbanked

1 of 2

adjective

un·​der·​banked ˌən-dər-ˈbaŋ(k)t 

: not using or having access to a full range of banking options

[The survey] also measures how many households are underbanked, meaning they have a bank account but look outside the banking system to meet transaction or credit needs.

—FDIC

Workers who live from paycheck to paycheck can easily slide from the traditional banking world to the underbanked world and then to the unbanked.

—Mikki Kendall

underbanked

2 of 2

noun

: a person or group of people who do not utilize or have access to a full range of banking options

As online transactions become ubiquitous, life has become more challenging for those who rely on cash: the unbanked, those who don't or can't access banking and financial services, and the underbanked, those who don't make full use of such services.

—Jackie Benton

Now he [Michael Broughton, CEO of Altro] wants to empower the underbanked, and eventually folks without any bank account at all, to have more financial power.

—Sara Bloomberg

Examples of underbanked in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Decentralized financial tools can reduce barriers for underbanked communities, empowering individuals and small businesses with access to innovative financial services. —Tonya Evans, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024

That regulatory hesitance has spurred a boom in e-wallets and digital banks across the Asia-Pacific region, as companies target unbanked and underbanked populations in developing markets. —Chris Morris, Fortune Asia, 5 Nov. 2024

Harris, by contrast, offers a vision centered on economic opportunity for middle-class and underbanked families, aiming to support a balanced regulatory approach that nurtures innovation without sacrificing consumer protections. —Tonya Evans, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024

LPMs are fundamentally more convenient, and as our report shows, that’s doubly true in countries where the population is comparatively underbanked and where mobile payments are king. —Stuart Neal, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

under entry 1 + banked, past participle of bank entry 4

Noun

derivative of underbanked entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1845, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1995, in the meaning defined above