STATISTICAL ASSESSMENT AND ECONOMETRIC MODELLING OF POPULATION USE OF BANKING SERVICES IN UZBEKISTAN
Keywords:
financial inclusion, banking services, remote banking, digital payments, payment cards, Global Findex, statistical assessment, econometrics, Uzbekistan.Abstract
This thesis develops a statistical framework for measuring the population’s use of banking services in Uzbekistan, with particular attention to remote banking, payment cards and digital access. The study combines supply-side indicators published by the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan with demand-side evidence from the World Bank Global Findex 2025. The paper stresses an important measurement distinction: counts of remote-banking users reported by banks are account- or bank-level registrations and may contain the same person more than once, whereas Global Findex indicators are based on nationally representative household survey data. Therefore, penetration should not be inferred by simply dividing aggregated bank registrations by population. A multidimensional banking-use index and an econometric specification for explaining individual or regional variation are proposed. The analysis indicates rapid expansion of digital banking infrastructure alongside persistent inclusion gaps by age, education and income, which supports a shift from simple access statistics toward usage intensity, regularity and effective digital capability.
