1.7 billion people are still Unbanked; chances for bitcoin

[The Cryptovator]

Indeed, it is true that a significant number of individuals are unbanked. However, I ponder whether those who are unfamiliar with the traditional banking system are also familiar with Bitcoin. In my experience, utilizing Bitcoin is often easier than navigating the complexities of the banking system. In recent times, many banks have adopted digital banking systems, allowing individuals to manage their funds from anywhere in the world using smartphones. This convenience is similar to the accessibility of Bitcoin, where one only requires a smartphone and an Internet connection. Consequently, I am somewhat skeptical about the likelihood of Bitcoin reaching those individuals who are not acquainted with digital banking systems.

[BitcoinPanther]

The statistics simply shows that Bitcoin has still lots of room to grow.  If half of the statistics shared by @OP had come to join the Bitcoin adoption then we can expect a possible exponential growth of Bitcoin market.

Of course it's a huge possibility for Bitcoin but I fear things are more complicated than bank buildings. First, Bitcoin should be accepted as legal tender and companies start paying their employees in Bitcoin.

Bitcoin does not need to be acknowledge as legal tender but as mode of payment is enough to use it by companies to function as payment to service or goods.

Bitcoin should also be accepted pretty much everywhere too. Otherwise, I doubt this is going to work.

Reason why adoption is needed and with lots of people being unbanked, it is an opportunity to extend its network and use case to cover these unbanked individuals.

[Rengga Jati]

Hence with 1.7 billion people staying unbanked, added to the increase of people who don't rely on banks, Bitcoin provides them with numerous options why they should use bitcoin for different purposes like sending money to relatives in different countries at a very low fee.

If this is in Indonesia, this may not happen, moreover people need bank account to have transaction or everything about Bitcoin activities. So, having Bitcoin means having bank account, commonly like this.
What happens to the society is that people are still using very traditional concepts' of transaction or payment, moreover in the traditionally market. Some also are still not using any bank because they are lack of the knowledge or they are against bank and prefer to save their money in gold or others. Moreover here, Bitcoin is not legal if used as payment method and I ma very sure that people who are not using bank account are also not interested in Bitcoin.
But, don't know if it's in other countries as mentioned.

[salad daging]

Of course it's a huge possibility for Bitcoin but I fear things are more complicated than bank buildings. First, Bitcoin should be accepted as legal tender and companies start paying their employees in Bitcoin.

Bitcoin does not need to be acknowledge as legal tender but as mode of payment is enough to use it by companies to function as payment to service or goods.

But still it must be acknowledged by the state that bitcoin has become a legal means of payment, but now it is still very minimal, some countries still refuse bitcoin as a legal means of payment, of course they will defend their local money, a company will certainly follow government regulations, so if it is illegal any company would not dare bitcoin as a means of payment for services or goods.

Bitcoin should also be accepted pretty much everywhere too. Otherwise, I doubt this is going to work.

Reason why adoption is needed and with lots of people being unbanked, it is an opportunity to extend its network and use case to cover these unbanked individuals.

Keep going back to the government if they reject it no matter how big the community is that expands bitcoin then it will be difficult to adopt, we just hope something changes where bitcoin can be adopted.

[serjent05]

There will be a slim chance for Bitcoin to tap this 1.7 Billion unbanked if the government does not approve of it.  These 1.7B are the individuals that are possibly waiting for the government's acceptance of Bitcoin to be able to utilize it to their own benefit.  We all know that not all people are brave enough to try any technology or service that is not accepted or introduced by their government.  If Bitcoin got the blessing of the government then most probably we can se more people getting involved with Bitcoin and the majority of them will be these unbanked people.

[DapanasFruit]

I agree that unbanked people can be a big market for Bitcoin or cryptocurrency but let's be honest that this is not as simple as it should be. One, this is only possible if there is a critical number of people that will almost simultaneously adopt Bitcoin so they can do P2P option as without the establishment of other third-party infrastructure it would be almost impossible to attract a big number of people to its side. What we are seeing now in El Salvador can be a big experiment with Bitcoin as it is their own government promoting it...but in other parts of the world we know that those in powers are not so interested with crypto. Certainly, there are many factors that we have to consider before we can say that Bitcoin is going to be helping the unbanked...but maybe things are getting more rosier that before...who knows time will come when Bitcoin will really sprout and be experiencing massive adoption.

[demonica]

I've made a research about this before, and as far as I remember, most reasons why people in the rural area stays unbanked is because usually banks are far from their area which make it unaccessible to most of them, the lack of funds to have an access to financial services, and no proper financial education. Bitcoin may help in solving some problems such as ccessibility, but it will still depends if they have access to internet connection in their area. Bitcoin is also cheaper when it comes to transaction costs, also it doesn't need any maintaining balance unlike with banks.  However, if a lot of people not just in rural area, still lack in basic financial education, it may be hard for them to adapt Bitcoin since it can be too complicated for them.
Bitcoin can solve some problems why people are still unbanked, but only to few. It's not an institution that provides various financial services to everyone.

[LittleBitFunny]

Currently, bitcoin is like a commodity, and to own bitcoin, you need to buy and sell it with fiat, if you don't have a bank account, how will you buy bitcoins? Are you an investor, and are you using the bank to buy and sell bitcoins? Honestly, I don't see this going to have any impact on the development of bitcoin, they are entirely unrelated. Moreover, many people are reducing their dependence on banks, which does not mean they no longer use banks and only use bitcoin. As long as fiat remains the main currency, we cannot stop using the bank completely, we will still depend on it to a certain extent.

[countryfree]

I guess few people here have ever been in a third world country. Yes, millions can't access a bank account, neither can they access an exchange. And that's good, because exchanges are for the poors are scams, taking a 10% fee, instead of the .5% (or less) we get in rich countries.

Also, some poor people don't use banks because they don't trust them, you couldn't convince them to use BTC...

People from 1st world cannot think the way people do in the 3rd world.

[kryptqnick]

Bitcoin is fairly easy to use, and for a person who doesn't know online banking, I don't think learning to use a wallet like Electrum would be much harder. 1.7 billion is also a formidable number, and covering even a third or so of that with Bitcoin would mean huge adoption. That being said, perhaps the unbanked don't have their devices (PC, smartphone) or maybe even don't have stable Internet connection where they live. That can be a huge challenge for using Bitcoin. Not to mention that Bitcoin would need to be adopted way more as a form of payment to truly be a good alternative for the unbanked population. Another big challenge is transaction fees, which aren't low and would get much higher if way more people actively used it.

[CryptSafe]

There is no doubt on your view mate, you now see the reason why bitcoin is seen as the freedom of the unbanked. There are still people out there all round the world who are yet to identify or have a bank account and in most cases, banks are very far from them so tell me what do you think would be the next solution to their transactions and payments as the case maybe.

Just like a poster said earlier it only takes just a smart phone to get connected to owning bitcoin which should be their option on resolve. This is a good point to hold as the banks are very far from the people so what do you think is the next option available for them and looking at the world population currently with  bitcoin scarcity of just 21,000,000 maximum supply. I think this is a good one for all to have a thought and ponder over it because as time goes on, bitcoin would gradually finds it way into the government and when that happens, it would definitely be a boom for the bitcoin market when the time comes.

[ImThour]

The chances of these 1.7 billion creating a Bitcoin wallet and buying Bitcoin is 0.01% as they don't have enough resources to atleast open a Bank account in their respective country. The requirements to open a Bitcoin account is a mobile with Internet service and then you also need adequate knowledge and experience to operate with Cryptocurrency which is a far high ceiling as compared to a normal Bank account. Impossible to get this audience.

[SquirrelJulietGarden]

The chances of these 1.7 billion creating a Bitcoin wallet and buying Bitcoin is 0.01% as they don't have enough resources to atleast open a Bank account in their respective country. The requirements to open a Bitcoin account is a mobile with Internet service and then you also need adequate knowledge and experience to operate with Cryptocurrency which is a far high ceiling as compared to a normal Bank account. Impossible to get this audience.

There are physically challenges for those 1.7 billion unbanked people but I disagree with you that it is impossible for them to access Bitcoin.

I see that Bitcoin will give them more convenience than with banks and bank accounts. With bank accounts, they will have to go to bank offices and open their bank accounts, with some required documents like ID card, selfie ... and because it is related to transportation, it will be barrier for many people.

With Bitcoin, they will have more convenience. They can download a wallet software, install it on their phone or computer and get their wallet and addresses to use. It's easy and more convenient than with banks and bank accounts. They don't have to go too far to any office like with bank accounts. No ID card submission too.

[Franctoshi]

These 1.7B are the individuals that are possibly waiting for the government's acceptance of Bitcoin to be able to utilize it to their benefit.  We all know that not all people are brave enough to try any technology or service that is not accepted or introduced by their government.  If Bitcoin got the blessing of the government then most probably we can see more people getting involved with Bitcoin and the majority of them will be these unbanked people.

I don't agree with you that 1.7B people will possibly be sitting on the sideline without operating a bank account just because they are waiting for their government to approve Bitcoin, No way.
 Factors I do think these people remain unbanked is
1. unavailability of funds to open an account.
2. people living in rural areas don't have nearby banks to run their bank accounts, And others for various reasons.
 There is an opportunity for Bitcoin to be adopted by these people in the future if they start Banking.

[eaLiTy]

~
Hence with 1.7 billion people staying unbanked, added to the increase of people who don't rely on banks, Bitcoin provides them with numerous options why they should use bitcoin for different purposes like sending money to relatives in different countries at a very low fee.

It is a novel theme that is being repeated for some years, the unbanked with the help of BTCitcoin sending money to relatives in different countries. Look around your neighborhood or meet people living in that kind of poverty, if any of their relatives are working or living abroad then they would be the bread winners and they will likely send money to the poor living without a banking account, if their surrounding is poor it is highly likely no one will accept BTCitcoin, only possible solution is to convert them to fiat and for that you need a bank account.

[FrozenBit]

I do not want to search or see for myself internet surveys, the implications for using bitcoin coins over the internet, and we can use them but accept that there are many places have not had access to it.
And the recent popularity of bitcoin is also impressive seeing more and more people using it, but we have to accept that we will need more time for it to be the same way that users are used current internet.

[elevates]

1.7 billion people ranging from 200 million in China and India each,

These two countries are why every country wants to join the BRICS. They are the ones who have a significant and rising economy and they are the ones who have contributed heavily to the New Development Bank. China has banned Bitcoin and India has placed a tax that has placed a shadow ban. Since I am from India, to use CBDC you do not need to have a bank account. The government as we all know is able to control CBDC without much effort.

100 million range in Pakistan and Indonesia, 45 to 65 million range in Mexico, Bangladesh, Nigeria etc.

Most of the data provided by these countries is incorrect. I assume the numbers would be more than what the world bank has reported. Already we have seen within the forum so many users are from these countries. I am certain these countries would benefit with adoption. I agree they are the ones we need to focus on.

Hence with 1.7 billion people staying unbanked

This figure of 1.7 billion is incorrect as two big countries are out.

[bettercrypto]

To be honest without bank account you can't even buy your bitcoin now for example if you have $100 worth of fiat in your hand and imagine the options of buying bitcoin without owning a bank account, it's kind of close to impossible job unless you can find someone in personal and exchange the cash when they sent BTC to your address.

Then how about spending the Bitcoin without converting it into fiat, gift cards just spent as BTC for exchange of goods the chances are too low as well so as of now people in the rural areas who doesn't have a bank account are not going to be the users of Bitcoin.

Nowadays, even if you don't have a bank account here in our country, you can still buy Bitcoin using the various merchants here. For example I can buy Bitcoin using the E-wallet that we have here such as Gcash apps which these apps have partnered with Various crypto exchanges such as Binance, Bybit and others. Apart from this, there are also Maya apps that are almost similar to the Gcash wallet followed by Coins.ph and others.

It means that it is clear that these things I mentioned may only be a second option in the bank if you do not have a bank account. I've been doing this for years actually.

[Fiatless]

There will be a slim chance for Bitcoin to tap this 1.7 Billion unbanked if the government does not approve of it.  These 1.7B are the individuals that are possibly waiting for the government's acceptance of Bitcoin to be able to utilize it to their own benefit.  We all know that not all people are brave enough to try any technology or service that is not accepted or introduced by their government.  If Bitcoin got the blessing of the government then most probably we can se more people getting involved with Bitcoin and the majority of them will be these unbanked people.

Unfriendly government policies are part of the impediment to bitcoin adoption but it is not the reason why many people don't have bank accounts. The unbanked population lives in rural areas and they are either poor or lack basic knowledge about financial transactions. The rural communities lack basic facilities that would make banking operations smooth. Many of these banks prefer to stay in urban areas because most of these rural dwellers are low-income earners. So even if Bitcoin is legalized other major factors will limit the adoption of bitcoin.

The chances of these 1.7 billion creating a Bitcoin wallet and buying Bitcoin is 0.01% as they don't have enough resources to atleast open a Bank account in their respective country. The requirements to open a Bitcoin account is a mobile with Internet service and then you also need adequate knowledge and experience to operate with Cryptocurrency which is a far high ceiling as compared to a normal Bank account. Impossible to get this audience.

To open a bank account sometimes is complex and it could discourage people from opening accounts. The simplicity of opening a Bitcoin wallet without any form of documentation and KYC could serve as an attraction to people to join the Bitcoin space. Learning the basics of a Bitcoin transaction is not a big deal. Anybody familiar with online bank transactions will easily learn how to receive and send Bitcoin. But there is also a need for new Bitcoin adopters to learn about keeping their coins safe.

[Lucius]

It would be interesting to know how many of these 1.7 billion unbanked actually do not even have access to the internet, and about 40% of the world's population does not have it at the moment. If 3.2 billion people don't have internet, is that a bigger problem than the 1.7 billion that are unbanked?

Hypothetically, if they all got access to the internet tomorrow and found out about Bitcoin what percentage of them would be interested in starting to use it? The example of El Salvador with about 70% of the population unbanked did not exactly show that people want Bitcoin even when it is completely legalized, given that the data showed that the percentage of those who use it is between 15-20%.

In El Salvador, some 70% of citizens are unbanked, meaning they lack access to a basic bank account. We know the unbanked face tremendous challenges in both saving and accumulating wealth.