· 70+ financial institutions around the world celebrate Banking on Values Day 2026, focused this year on financial inclusion
· GABV member institutions show that exclusion can persist even when financial services are available
Amsterdam, Netherlands, 10 November 2026 – Having a bank account is not the same as being financially included. Financial services may be available, but they can remain out of reach because they are too expensive, difficult to use, poorly adapted to people’s circumstances or disconnected from customers’ needs.
That is the message behind Faces of Inclusion, the theme of Banking on Values Day 2026, the annual global campaign of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values (GABV). This year, values-based banks worldwide highlight the different forms financial exclusion takes and share practical approaches to making finance work better for people, businesses, and communities.
Financial exclusion affects local economies
To better understand the different layers of financial exclusion, the GABV surveyed its 74 member institutions across 48 countries. The responses represent 89% of its membership. They offer a practitioner perspective on the barriers institutions encounter and the approaches they use to address them, from institutions at the front-line of financial inclusion.
The findings underline why access alone cannot define inclusion. While 36% of respondents identified lack of access as the most common cause of financial exclusion, nearly two-thirds pointed to barriers that persist even when services are available. For 42%, the main issue is that services are not adapted to people’s needs, while 14% cited a lack of trust or use and 8% pointed to cost.
Participants also pointed to features of the financial system, particularly collateral or eligibility requirements (62%), documentation or legal identity (38%) and the cost of financial services (29%).
Martin Rohner, Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values:
“Financial inclusion should not be measured only by how many people enter the financial system, but by whether that system works for them once they are there. Financial services must be accessible, affordable and applicable to people’s real needs and circumstances. This Banking on Values Day, we are looking beyond the statistics to understand the different realities of financial inclusion and exclusion.”
Despite the availability of financial services, the consequences of not being able to access them mean a third of the survey’s respondents believe people are more vulnerable economically; many have to rely on informal or predatory lending (18%), while others can’t access affordable credit (14%), and still more cannot properly participate in the formal economy and employment (12%). Respondents also pointed to barriers to business creation and growth, and to constrained local economic development, both at 11%.
Across very different social and economic contexts – from microfinance institutions in emerging markets to credit unions serving disadvantaged communities in mature markets – respondents said financial exclusion most often affects low-income individuals or households (53%), migrants and refugees (45%), rural or remote communities (41%), women (29%) and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs, 24%). When asked which approaches best serve these groups, values-based banks gave the strongest support to relationship banking (52%), tailored financial products (50%), and financial literacy initiatives (41%).
A shared challenge
Participating GABV institutions also pointed to the role of the wider financial ecosystem. When asked for the single most important action governments or regulators should take, 41% selected aligning incentives or requirements for banks with financial-inclusion objectives, followed by support for financial-literacy initiatives at 26%. Stronger consumer-protection frameworks and improved digital infrastructure were each selected by 12%.
Read the article with the detailed survey results and explore the Faces of Inclusion campaign: www.bankingonvaluesday.com
About the GABV Financial Inclusion Survey
The survey gathered responses from 66 financial institutions across 45 countries between July and September 2026, representing 89% of GABV membership. It reflects the perspectives and experiences of participating institutions in their own contexts and is not intended to provide statistically representative estimates of financial exclusion at national, regional or global level. Some questions allowed multiple responses.
About the GABV
The Global Alliance for Banking on Values (GABV) is a network of independent banks and credit unions using finance to deliver sustainable economic, social and environmental development. The GABV comprises 74 financial institutions operating in 48 countries across Asia Pacific, Africa, Latin America & the Caribbean, North America and Europe. Collectively, they serve more than 50 million customers and hold over USD 290 billion of combined assets under management.
