Fintechs and financial health: How these startups empower communities

India has made significant strides in ensuring more people can access financial services. The Reserve Bank of India's Financial Inclusion (FI) Index — which measures the ease of access, usage, and quality of financial products and services— rose in March 2024, indicating progress. Yet low and middle-income (LMI) households in rural and underserved communities continue to face challenges.

JPMorganChase is committed to applying its reach and resources to promote access to mainstream financial services and create a foundation for resilient households and communities. To promote financial health and security in India, the firm helped a startup incubator develop and scale inclusive fintech solutions.

Addressing a market need

India is home to more than 159,000 startups, making it the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem. For financial technology (fintech) ventures, the outlook is promising. Projections estimate the Indian fintech industry’s market size in 2025 will be $1.3 trillion.

But small ventures working to promote financial health and inclusion in LMI households have struggled to access financing and other support.

The Financial Inclusion Lab, created with support from JPMorganChase, supports early stage fintechs that cater to LMI consumers earning between $2 and $10 daily. By providing funding, mentorship and access to digital tools, the Lab enables fintechs to expand financial access, improve affordability and help LMI consumers better manage their finances.

Established in 2018, the lab is managed by IIMA Ventures, a startup incubator created by the Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad (IIMA).

Bridging the fintech divide

With support from JPMorganChase, IIMA Ventures and the consulting firm MicroSave carried out a study in 2018 to understand the opportunities in the fintech industry.

“Together, we studied what startups in underserved communities needed the most,” says Sandeep Koujalgi, a Senior Vice-President at IIMA Ventures. “This research led to the launch of the Financial Inclusion Lab.”

JPMorganChase helped establish the lab with a grant of $ 9.5 million in 2018.

“They helped us expand our vision,” says Koujalgi. “They shared insights, guidance and feedback, helping us position ourselves not just as a program, but as a platform for building financial health and resilience where it’s needed the most.”

The mission of the Financial Inclusion Lab is three-fold:

• Help scale ventures working to improve the financial health of the LMI population.
• Provide capital and strategic inputs to power innovation in LMI-focused financial services.
• Use technology as a catalyst for driving financial inclusion.

The lab backs startups working in under-invested sectors in the fintech space, such as savings, insurance and agriculture. Such firms include a digital insurance platform targeting rural consumers and a digital lender catering to farmers and rural businesses.

Driving inclusive growth

The Lab’s work has resulted in a 30% increase in access to digital financial tools and a 40% improvement in financial literacy in underserved rural areas. This empowers the LMI community to save, invest, and secure their livelihoods, contributing to broader economic growth and stability.

Further, fintechs supported by the Lab have raised more than $80 million in follow-on funding. Results like these demonstrate how philanthropic investments help create sustainable, scalable solutions.

“Strategic collaboration between the private and public sectors to help strengthen businesses and expand access to capital can help solve for hard-to-address social challenges,” says Maneesha Chadha, the Head of Grant Programming for the Asia-Pacific region at JPMorganChase. “These include things like advancing equitable access to financial tools and services and improving financial health —all of which can help drive economic growth.”

Learn more about JPMorganChase’s commitment to India.