Global Banking Statistics 2026
By Axis Intelligence Research
Co-author: Sarah Davis | Last updated: October 13, 2026 | License: CC BY 4.0
Banks held $191.3 trillion of financial assets in 2024, 38.0% of the world’s $503.7 trillion, according to the Financial Stability Board. Yet 1.3 billion adults still have no account, and Axis Intelligence Research estimates 40.3% of them live in just five countries. On the new Axis Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI), Switzerland scores 99.2 and Niger 10.6.
Quick Answer
The global banking system held $191.3 trillion in 2024 (FSB), grew 4.7%, and lost ground to nonbank finance, which grew 9.4%. Some 78.7% of adults worldwide had an account in 2024 (World Bank). Across 125 economies, the Axis Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI) has a median of 52.1; the United States ranks 34th at 63.3.
Key Findings
- According to Axis Intelligence Research, China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and Bangladesh together hold an estimated 525.6 million unbanked adults, 40.3% of the world total, as of 2024.
- Banks held $191.3 trillion, or 38.0% of global financial assets, at the end of 2024, while nonbank financial assets reached $256.8 trillion, according to the Financial Stability Board.
- On the Axis Intelligence Research Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI), Switzerland ranks first of 125 economies at 99.2 and Niger last at 10.6, with a median score of 52.1.
- Axis Intelligence Research finds the United States has a reach-depth gap of 67.3 points: 97.0% of adults hold an account, but bank credit to the private sector equals only 44.51% of GDP.
- The United States is home to 8 of the 29 global systemically important banks on the FSB’s November 2025 list, 27.6% of the total, against 5 for China and 7 for the euro area.
How Big Is the Global Banking Industry in 2026?
Banks held $191.3 trillion of financial assets at the end of 2024, up 4.7% in the year, according to the Financial Stability Board’s Global Monitoring Report on Nonbank Financial Intermediation 2025, published December 16, 2025. That is 38.0% of the $503.7 trillion held by every financial sector across the 29 jurisdictions the FSB monitors, which together account for more than 90% of world GDP. It is the most recent complete measure of the world’s banking balance sheet; the FSB’s 2026 edition, covering 2025, is not yet published.
| Sector (end-2024) | Financial assets | Growth in 2024 | Share of global financial assets | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banks | $191.3 trillion | 4.7% | 38.0% | FSB GMR 2025 |
| Nonbank financial intermediation (NBFI) | $256.8 trillion | 9.4% | 51.0% | FSB GMR 2025 |
| Central banks | $34.1 trillion | -4.2% | 6.8% | FSB GMR 2025 |
| Public financial institutions | $21.5 trillion | 4.3% | FSB GMR 2025 | |
| Total global financial assets | $503.7 trillion | 6.3% | 100% | FSB GMR 2025 |
The four sectors sum exactly to the FSB total. Banking still dominates where it matters most for borrowers: banks held 81.3% of all loan assets in the FSB data, and banks were the largest financial sector in 22 of the 29 jurisdictions.
Are banks losing ground to nonbank lenders?
Yes, by balance-sheet share. According to Axis Intelligence Research, nonbank financial assets grew 2.0 times as fast as bank assets in 2024 (9.4% against 4.7%), and the nonbank sector is now $65.5 trillion larger than the banking sector, a ratio of 1.34 to 1. The FSB’s narrow measure of nonbank activity, the part that can pose bank-like risks, reached $76.3 trillion, up 12%.
The split differs sharply by development level. Banks hold 58.6% of financial assets in emerging market economies and only 32.4% in advanced economies, per the FSB. In seven jurisdictions, including the United States, Canada and Switzerland, other financial intermediaries rather than banks are the largest sector.
Sarah Davis: A 38.0% share understates how much of the system still runs through a bank. Private credit funds, money market funds and broker-dealers all hold their cash, their credit lines and their payment access at banks. The nonbank boom is real, but a lot of it is banks renting out their balance sheet in a different legal wrapper. The 81.3% loan share is the better read on who actually underwrites the world’s borrowers.
Which Banks Are Too Big to Fail? The 2026 G-SIB List
The Financial Stability Board names 29 global systemically important banks (G-SIBs) in its 2025 list, published November 27, 2025, the same 29 banks as in 2024. Each bucket carries a higher loss absorbency (HLA) requirement: extra common equity on top of the Basel minimum, expressed as a share of risk-weighted assets.
| Bucket | Extra capital (HLA) | Banks | Count | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 3.5% | None | 0 | FSB |
| 4 | 2.5% | JPMorgan Chase | 1 | FSB |
| 3 | 2.0% | Bank of America, Citigroup, HSBC, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China | 4 | FSB |
| 2 | 1.5% | Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, Barclays, BNP Paribas, China Construction Bank, Goldman Sachs, Groupe Credit Agricole, Mitsubishi UFJ FG, UBS | 9 | FSB |
| 1 | 1.0% | Bank of Communications, Bank of New York Mellon, Deutsche Bank, Groupe BPCE, ING, Mizuho FG, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank of Canada, Santander, Societe Generale, Standard Chartered, State Street, Sumitomo Mitsui FG, Toronto Dominion, Wells Fargo | 15 | FSB |
Three banks changed buckets. Bank of America and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China moved up to bucket 3, a change that takes effect on January 1, 2027; Deutsche Bank moved down to bucket 1, which applies immediately unless national authorities delay it. JPMorgan Chase is alone in bucket 4, and bucket 5 stays empty.
Which countries have the most systemically important banks?
| Home jurisdiction | G-SIBs | Share of the 29 | Average HLA requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 8 | 27.6% | 1.50% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| China | 5 | 17.2% | 1.50% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| France | 4 | 13.8% | 1.25% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| United Kingdom | 3 | 10.3% | 1.50% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Japan | 3 | 10.3% | 1.17% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Canada | 2 | 6.9% | 1.00% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Switzerland | 1 | 3.4% | 1.50% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Germany | 1 | 3.4% | 1.00% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Netherlands | 1 | 3.4% | 1.00% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
| Spain | 1 | 3.4% | 1.00% | Axis Intelligence Research from FSB list |
According to Axis Intelligence Research, the average G-SIB carries a 1.34% surcharge, and American and Chinese G-SIBs sit at exactly the same average, 1.50%. Counting France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain together, the euro area hosts 7 G-SIBs, 24.1% of the list.
For bank-by-bank detail on the largest systems, see the Axis US banking statistics, European banking statistics and Swiss banking statistics pages, plus the group pages on JPMorgan Chase and UBS.
Sarah Davis: The bucket is the price of being hard to resolve. JPMorgan pays 2.5 points of extra equity on every risk-weighted dollar, a full point more than Goldman Sachs. The two Chinese promotions matter less for the capital ratio than for the signal: ICBC is now scored as systemically as important as Citigroup, and the surcharge follows from 2027.
How Much Do Banks Lend Across Borders?
Internationally active banks held $47.6 trillion of cross-border claims at the end of March 2026, up $2.1 trillion in the quarter, according to the Bank for International Settlements’ international banking statistics release of July 31, 2026. Cross-border credit, the lending component, stood at $39.5 trillion, up 11% from a year earlier.
| Indicator (end-March 2026) | Value | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-border bank claims | $47.6 trillion | +$2.1 trillion in Q1 2026 | BIS |
| Cross-border bank credit | $39.5 trillion | +11% year on year | BIS |
| Cross-border credit to nonbank financial institutions | +$651 billion in Q1 2026 | BIS | |
| Cross-border credit to emerging and developing economies | +$148 billion in Q1 2026 | BIS | |
| US dollar credit to nonbanks outside the US | $14.7 trillion | +7.3% year on year | BIS |
| Euro credit to nonbanks outside the euro area | EUR 5.1 trillion | +12% year on year | BIS |
About 30% of the offshore dollar credit is owed by borrowers in emerging and developing economies, per the BIS. The euro is gaining as a funding currency: its share of global foreign-currency credit rose from 22% at end-September 2022 to 28% at end-March 2026.
Axis Intelligence Research declined to express cross-border claims as a share of the FSB’s $191.3 trillion: the BIS reporting-bank population and the FSB’s 29-jurisdiction perimeter differ, and the dates are fifteen months apart. The declined calculation is a retracted row in the dataset.
How Many Adults Have a Bank Account Worldwide?
78.7% of adults worldwide had an account at a financial institution or a mobile money provider in 2024, according to the World Bank’s Global Findex 2025. That is up from 73.8% in 2021, 69.3% in 2017 and about 50% in 2011. Axis Intelligence Research calculates a 4.9 percentage point gain in three years.
The World Bank’s July 2025 release puts the number of adults still without an account at 1.3 billion. About 900 million of them own a mobile phone, and 530 million a smartphone. Women trail men by 4 points globally: 77% against 81%.
| Income group (2024) | Account ownership, age 15+ | Bank credit to private sector, % of GDP (year) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| High income | 94.9% | 73.06% (2024) | World Bank (Findex, WDI) |
| Upper middle income | 84.0% | 136.85% (2024) | World Bank (Findex, WDI) |
| Lower middle income | 70.4% | 38.10% (2025) | World Bank (Findex, WDI) |
| Low income | 46.4% | 12.35% (2020) | World Bank (Findex, WDI) |
| World | 78.7% | 91.32% (2024) | World Bank (Findex, WDI) |
According to Axis Intelligence Research, the gap in account ownership between high-income and low-income economies is 48.5 percentage points. Upper-middle-income economies show deeper bank credit than high-income ones; China alone, at 194.31% of GDP, sits far above both group averages.
Mobile money now rivals bank accounts in Sub-Saharan Africa
In Sub-Saharan Africa, 40.0% of adults have a mobile money account and 37.8% an account at a financial institution, according to the World Bank’s Little Data Book on Financial Inclusion 2025. Worldwide, those shares are 15.3% and 75.3%. In developing economies, 40% of adults saved in an account in 2024, up 16 points since 2021, and 42% made a digital merchant payment, up from 35%.
Which Countries Have the Most Unbanked Adults?
According to Axis Intelligence Research, China has the largest unbanked adult population in the world, an estimated 125.6 million, even though 89.4% of Chinese adults have an account. Axis Intelligence Research multiplied each country’s 2024 adult population by its share of adults without an account.
| Rank | Country | Adults (15+), millions | Account ownership, 2024 | Estimated unbanked adults, millions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 1,183.4 | 89.4% | 125.6 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 2 | India | 1,093.7 | 89.0% | 120.0 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 3 | Pakistan | 159.1 | 27.3% | 115.7 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 4 | Indonesia | 213.7 | 56.3% | 93.3 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 5 | Bangladesh | 125.0 | 43.3% | 70.9 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 6 | Nigeria | 137.3 | 63.3% | 50.4 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 7 | Mexico | 98.8 | 53.0% | 46.4 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 8 | Egypt | 79.3 | 43.1% | 45.1 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 9 | Philippines | 83.6 | 50.2% | 41.6 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 10 | Ethiopia | 80.5 | 48.8% | 41.2 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 11 | Congo, Dem. Rep. | 59.0 | 39.2% | 35.8 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
| 12 | Russia | 118.8 | 79.3% | 24.6 | Axis Intelligence Research estimate from World Bank data |
Adults = total population × (1 − share aged 0 to 14). Population from World Bank WDI for 2024.
Run on the world aggregate, the same method gives 1.30 billion unbanked adults, matching the World Bank’s own figure. According to Axis Intelligence Research, the five largest countries account for 40.3% of the world’s unbanked and the ten largest for 57.6%. Pakistan stands out: with 27.3% account ownership, it has nearly as many unbanked adults as India, with roughly a seventh of the adult population.
Sarah Davis: The two largest unbanked populations live in countries where nine in ten adults already have an account. That is a scale problem, not a coverage problem, and it closes through national ID and payment rails rather than branches. Pakistan, Egypt and Bangladesh are different: a majority of adults are still outside, and the fee on every remittance and cash transaction is paid by the people who can least afford it.
The Axis Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI): Which Countries Have the Strongest Banking Systems?
Rankings of “the best banking systems” usually rely on surveys or on bank size. The Axis Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI) measures the two things a banking system exists to do, in one number from 0 to 100: reach adults with an account, and lend to the private economy. Both inputs are public World Bank series that anyone can download and recompute.
How the BRDI is calculated
BRDI = 0.5 × Reach + 0.5 × Depth
- Reach (50%): the share of adults aged 15 and over with an account at a financial institution or mobile money provider, from the Global Findex 2025, 2024 survey. A score of 98.4 means 98.4% of adults.
- Depth (50%): domestic credit to the private sector by banks as a percentage of GDP, divided by 150 and capped at 100. Bank credit equal to 150% of GDP or more scores 100.
The 150% anchor is fixed, so a reading means the same thing next year. Coverage is every economy with a 2024 Findex value and a bank-credit observation from 2022 or later: 125 of the 139 economies with 2024 account data. Canada, Russia, Singapore, Ethiopia and Cameroon are left out because their latest bank-credit figures date from 2008 to 2021; each is a retracted row in the dataset. The reach-depth gap, Reach minus Depth, shows which half of the job a system does better.
BRDI ranking: the 15 highest-scoring economies
| Rank | Economy | Account ownership, 2024 (Reach) | Bank credit to private sector, % of GDP (year) | Depth score | BRDI | Reach-depth gap | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Switzerland | 98.4% | 152.58% (2025) | 100.0 | 99.2 | -1.6 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 2 | Hong Kong SAR | 97.3% | 222.65% (2025) | 100.0 | 98.7 | -2.7 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 3 | Korea, Rep. | 96.9% | 160.35% (2024) | 100.0 | 98.4 | -3.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 4 | Denmark | 98.7% | 144.06% (2024) | 96.0 | 97.3 | +2.6 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 5 | China | 89.4% | 194.31% (2024) | 100.0 | 94.7 | -10.6 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 6 | Australia | 98.0% | 133.79% (2025) | 89.2 | 93.6 | +8.8 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 7 | New Zealand | 97.9% | 129.68% (2025) | 86.5 | 92.2 | +11.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 8 | Sweden | 98.6% | 125.29% (2024) | 83.5 | 91.0 | +15.0 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 9 | Japan | 98.5% | 114.38% (2025) | 76.3 | 87.4 | +22.3 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 10 | United Kingdom | 99.3% | 112.28% (2024) | 74.9 | 87.1 | +24.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 11 | Norway | 98.6% | 108.22% (2025) | 72.1 | 85.4 | +26.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 12 | France | 99.2% | 103.90% (2024) | 69.3 | 84.2 | +29.9 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 13 | Malaysia | 88.7% | 117.92% (2025) | 78.6 | 83.7 | +10.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 14 | Thailand | 91.8% | 111.79% (2025) | 74.5 | 83.2 | +17.3 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 15 | Finland | 99.8% | 90.89% (2024) | 60.6 | 80.2 | +39.2 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
This is the baseline reading of the index. According to Axis Intelligence Research, Switzerland leads the BRDI at 99.2, followed by Hong Kong SAR at 98.7 and Korea at 98.4. Malaysia (83.7) and Thailand (83.2) score above Germany (74.6) and Spain (73.3), on bank credit of 117.92% and 111.79% of GDP.
BRDI scores for G20 economies
| Rank | Economy | Account ownership, 2024 (Reach) | Bank credit to private sector, % of GDP (year) | Depth score | BRDI | Reach-depth gap | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Korea, Rep. | 96.9% | 160.35% (2024) | 100.0 | 98.4 | -3.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 5 | China | 89.4% | 194.31% (2024) | 100.0 | 94.7 | -10.6 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 6 | Australia | 98.0% | 133.79% (2025) | 89.2 | 93.6 | +8.8 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 9 | Japan | 98.5% | 114.38% (2025) | 76.3 | 87.4 | +22.3 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 10 | United Kingdom | 99.3% | 112.28% (2024) | 74.9 | 87.1 | +24.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 12 | France | 99.2% | 103.90% (2024) | 69.3 | 84.2 | +29.9 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 20 | Germany | 98.3% | 76.38% (2023) | 50.9 | 74.6 | +47.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 28 | Brazil | 86.4% | 75.10% (2025) | 50.1 | 68.2 | +36.3 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 33 | Italy | 86.0% | 61.93% (2023) | 41.3 | 63.7 | +44.7 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 34 | United States | 97.0% | 44.51% (2025) | 29.7 | 63.3 | +67.3 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 40 | Saudi Arabia | 78.8% | 64.31% (2025) | 42.9 | 60.9 | +36.0 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 42 | South Africa | 81.1% | 59.19% (2025) | 39.5 | 60.3 | +41.7 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 46 | India | 89.0% | 44.03% (2025) | 29.4 | 59.2 | +59.7 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 60 | Turkiye | 81.6% | 36.89% (2025) | 24.6 | 53.1 | +57.0 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 72 | Argentina | 81.7% | 15.83% (2025) | 10.6 | 46.1 | +71.2 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 90 | Indonesia | 56.3% | 31.78% (2025) | 21.2 | 38.8 | +35.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 100 | Mexico | 53.0% | 27.10% (2025) | 18.1 | 35.5 | +35.0 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
Canada and Russia are G20 members without a qualifying bank-credit observation.
According to Axis Intelligence Research, the United States ranks 34th on the BRDI, behind Thailand and Brazil, because its banks lend the equivalent of 44.51% of GDP. That does not mean American borrowers get less credit: the FSB lists the United States among the seven jurisdictions where nonbank intermediaries, not banks, are the largest financial sector. The BRDI measures what banks do, and in the US a large share of lending happens outside them.
The 10 lowest-scoring economies
| Rank | Economy | Account ownership, 2024 (Reach) | Bank credit to private sector, % of GDP (year) | Depth score | BRDI | Reach-depth gap | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 116 | Congo, Dem. Rep. | 39.2% | 11.23% (2023) | 7.5 | 23.4 | +31.7 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 117 | Gambia | 38.2% | 9.12% (2024) | 6.1 | 22.1 | +32.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 118 | Nicaragua | 23.5% | 29.05% (2024) | 19.4 | 21.4 | +4.1 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 119 | Guinea | 36.0% | 9.91% (2025) | 6.6 | 21.3 | +29.4 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 120 | Sierra Leone | 38.6% | 5.48% (2025) | 3.7 | 21.1 | +35.0 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 121 | Libya | 33.1% | 12.35% (2025) | 8.2 | 20.7 | +24.9 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 122 | Iraq | 30.2% | 13.99% (2024) | 9.3 | 19.7 | +20.8 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 123 | Madagascar | 24.5% | 16.28% (2024) | 10.9 | 17.7 | +13.6 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 124 | Pakistan | 27.3% | 10.68% (2025) | 7.1 | 17.2 | +20.2 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
| 125 | Niger | 14.8% | 9.53% (2025) | 6.4 | 10.6 | +8.5 | Axis Intelligence Research from World Bank data |
Pakistan ranks 124th of 125. Its banks lend 10.68% of GDP and reach 27.3% of adults.
Reach without credit, and credit without reach
The reach-depth gap separates two kinds of banking system that a single score would blur together.
Reach without credit. According to Axis Intelligence Research, Kenya is the clearest case: 90.1% of adults have an account, but banks lend only 29.34% of GDP, a gap of 70.6 points. Ghana (81.2% reach, 7.25% credit, gap 76.4), Ukraine (gap 79.6) and Argentina (gap 71.2) show the same pattern. Payments and mobile money have put nearly everyone inside the system, but the balance sheet has not followed.
Credit without reach. Cambodia runs the reverse: bank credit equals 120.63% of GDP while only 39.0% of adults hold an account, a gap of -41.4. Viet Nam (-12.8), China (-10.6) and Honduras (-6.0) also lend more than they include. Credit is concentrated on the borrowers already inside.
Sarah Davis: Kenya and Cambodia sit 112 points apart on the gap and that spread is the most useful number on this page. An account that only receives a wage is a payments product; a bank that lends 120% of GDP to a third of adults is a concentration risk. Neither shows up in a ranking of the biggest banks, and both decide whether banking actually reaches the economy.
How Many Bank Branches Are There Per Person Around the World?
The world had 11.12 commercial bank branches per 100,000 adults in 2024, according to IMF Financial Access Survey data published by the World Bank. Branch density runs from 21.88 in North America and 18.55 in the euro area to 4.01 in Sub-Saharan Africa.
| Region (2024) | Account ownership | Bank credit to private sector, % of GDP (year) | Branches per 100,000 adults | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Asia & Pacific (excl. high income) | 83.3% | 176.60% (2024) | 8.09 | World Bank |
| Europe & Central Asia (excl. high income) | 77.8% | 33.88% (2025) | 21.17 | World Bank |
| Latin America & Caribbean (excl. high income) | 69.7% | 47.29% (2025) | 11.70 | World Bank |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excl. high income) | 52.9% | 26.93% (2025) | 11.48 | World Bank |
| South Asia | 77.6% | 43.52% (2025) | 15.97 | World Bank |
| Sub-Saharan Africa (excl. high income) | 58.2% | 24.71% (2023) | 4.01 | World Bank |
| High income | 94.9% | 73.06% (2024) | 15.46 | World Bank |
| World | 78.7% | 91.32% (2024) | 11.12 | World Bank |
Branches no longer predict access. The Netherlands has 3.96 branches per 100,000 adults and Finland 3.78, yet both report account ownership above 99%. Japan has 33.71 and Spain 31.33. Kenya, with 4.52 branches per 100,000 adults, has higher account ownership than Italy, which has 30.33. How customers now choose between apps and branches is tracked on the Axis digital banking statistics page, and how banks deploy automation on the AI in banking statistics page.
What Would Change These Numbers Before Year-End 2026?
The FSB published its 2025 G-SIB list in November and its Global Monitoring Report in December; the next editions will reset the bucket table and replace the end-2024 asset figures with end-2025 data. The BIS released banking statistics in January, April and July 2026, and its next release will cover end-June 2026. The BRDI depth scores update as the World Bank adds 2025 and 2026 bank-credit observations; reach scores move with the next Global Findex survey.
For how stress shows up at the bank level, the Axis bank failures page tracks every US failure since 1934, the banking fraud statistics page covers customer losses, the private banking statistics page ranks the world’s wealth booking centers, and the CBDC statistics page follows central bank digital money.
Methodology
Scope. This page covers the global banking system at three levels: aggregate bank assets across the FSB’s 29 monitored jurisdictions (end-2024), the 29 G-SIBs (FSB list of November 27, 2025), and country-level access and lending across 125 economies (Global Findex 2024 survey and World Bank bank-credit data from 2022 to 2025).
Sources. Every figure was fetched from its publisher on October 13, 2026: the FSB Global Monitoring Report on Nonbank Financial Intermediation 2025 and its 2025 G-SIB list; the BIS international banking statistics release of July 31, 2026; the World Bank Global Findex 2025 landing page, its July 16, 2025 press release and the Little Data Book on Financial Inclusion 2025; and World Development Indicators series FX.OWN.TOTL.ZS (account ownership), FD.AST.PRVT.GD.ZS (bank credit to the private sector), FB.CBK.BRCH.P5 (bank branches, from the IMF Financial Access Survey), SP.POP.TOTL and SP.POP.0014.TO.ZS (population), read from the World Bank API. No figure comes from a ranking publisher, an aggregator or memory.
Formulas. BRDI = 0.5 × account ownership + 0.5 × min(bank credit to private sector % of GDP ÷ 150, 1) × 100. Reach-depth gap = Reach − Depth. Estimated unbanked adults = population × (100 − share aged 0 to 14) ÷ 100 × (100 − account ownership) ÷ 100. G-SIB average HLA = simple mean of the bucket rates of a jurisdiction’s G-SIBs. NBFI-to-bank ratio = $256.8 trillion ÷ $191.3 trillion.
Scope notes. Bank credit observations range from 2022 to 2025 because national reporting lags differ; each row in the dataset carries its own year. GDP is the denominator for depth, so economies with large financial centers or unusual GDP measurement score high or low on depth for reasons that are partly statistical. Unbanked estimates apply Findex survey shares to WDI population and are Axis estimates, not World Bank counts; they sum to 1.29 billion across the 139 surveyed economies against the World Bank’s 1.3 billion. Two calculations were declined and published as retracted rows: bank assets as a share of world GDP, and cross-border claims as a share of bank assets.
BRDI. The two components, the equal weights and the 150% depth anchor are fixed so readings stay comparable. Any future change to components or weights will be announced with a re-based series.
About This Dataset
The fact table behind this page, 1,815 rows covering FSB sector assets, all 29 G-SIBs with buckets and surcharges, BIS cross-border figures, Findex headline and income-group data, account ownership, bank credit, branch density and population for every economy with data, BRDI components, scores, ranks and gaps for 125 economies, unbanked estimates, source discrepancies and declined calculations, is available as global-banking-statistics-2026.csv. Each row carries the value, unit, as-of date, source organization, document, URL, retrieval date, primary-source flag, Axis-calculated flag and a method note for every calculated row.
- License: CC BY 4.0. Free reuse with attribution to Axis Intelligence Research.
- Mirrors: Hugging Face, Kaggle and GitHub under the same file name.
- Citation line: Axis Intelligence Research, Global Banking Statistics 2026, 2026.
Cite This Page
APA: Axis Intelligence Research, & Davis, S. (2026, October 13). Global banking statistics 2026: $191.3 trillion in bank assets, 1.3 billion unbanked adults and the Bank Reach and Depth Index. Axis Intelligence. https://axis-intelligence.com/global-banking-statistics/
MLA: Axis Intelligence Research, and Sarah Davis. “Global Banking Statistics 2026: $191.3 Trillion in Bank Assets, 1.3 Billion Unbanked Adults and the Bank Reach and Depth Index.” Axis Intelligence, 13 Oct. 2026, axis-intelligence.com/global-banking-statistics/.
Chicago: Axis Intelligence Research, and Sarah Davis. “Global Banking Statistics 2026: $191.3 Trillion in Bank Assets, 1.3 Billion Unbanked Adults and the Bank Reach and Depth Index.” Axis Intelligence, October 13, 2026. https://axis-intelligence.com/global-banking-statistics/.
Global Banking, Answered With Data
How much money is held by banks worldwide?
Banks held $191.3 trillion of financial assets at the end of 2024, up 4.7%, according to the Financial Stability Board. That is 38.0% of the $503.7 trillion in global financial assets across the 29 jurisdictions the FSB monitors.
What percentage of the world’s adults have a bank account?
78.7% of adults aged 15 and over had an account at a financial institution or mobile money provider in 2024, according to the World Bank’s Global Findex 2025, up from 73.8% in 2021. About 1.3 billion adults remain unbanked.
Which country has the most unbanked adults?
China, with an estimated 125.6 million adults without an account, followed by India at 120.0 million and Pakistan at 115.7 million, according to Axis Intelligence Research estimates from World Bank data for 2024.
Which banks are considered too big to fail in 2026?
The FSB lists 29 global systemically important banks. JPMorgan Chase is the only bank in bucket 4, with a 2.5% capital surcharge; Bank of America, Citigroup, HSBC and ICBC sit in bucket 3 at 2.0%.
Are nonbank lenders bigger than banks?
Yes. Nonbank financial assets reached $256.8 trillion in 2024, 1.34 times bank assets, and grew 9.4% against 4.7% for banks, according to FSB data calculated by Axis Intelligence Research. Banks still held 81.3% of loan assets.
Why do US banks lend less relative to GDP than banks in Thailand or Brazil?
US bank credit to the private sector equals 44.51% of GDP, against 111.79% in Thailand and 75.10% in Brazil, per the World Bank. In the US, nonbank intermediaries are the largest financial sector, so much lending sits outside banks.
Which country has the strongest banking system by reach and depth?
Switzerland, with a BRDI score of 99.2: 98.4% of adults have an account and bank credit equals 152.58% of GDP. Hong Kong SAR (98.7) and Korea (98.4) follow, according to Axis Intelligence Research.
How much do banks lend across borders?
Cross-border bank claims reached $47.6 trillion at the end of March 2026, up $2.1 trillion in the quarter, and cross-border credit grew 11% in a year, according to the Bank for International Settlements.
What is the Bank Reach and Depth Index (BRDI)?
The BRDI is an Axis Intelligence Research score from 0 to 100 that averages adult account ownership (reach) with bank credit to the private sector as a share of GDP, capped at 150% (depth). Across 125 economies the median is 52.1.