Wealth creation: 55 crore UPI users vs 6 crore investors — to increase participation India can learn from global markets

EY India’s latest ‘Wealth inclusion in India: Expanding investor participation beyond metros’ report notes that trends have evolved, and the country is poised to add 10 crore long-term investors by 2035 as wealth creation expands to tier 2 and 3 cities.

It added that the new investors can be credited to rising participation from smaller cities, young investors, women and digitally connected households. Further, Gen Z or investors under the age of 30 now comprise 38% of the investor base in India, up from 23% in FY19.

It added that despite the growth there is untapped potential, noting that India currently has over 55 crore active UPI users, compared to the 6.2 crore individuals investing in mutual funds and about 5 crore people actively participating in the equity markets. “The gap indicates that while digital access has scaled rapidly, broad-based wealth participation is still at an early stage,” it added.

The report pointed to global lessons from five countries that can be integrated into one approach to build India’s path to inclusive and sustainable wealth creation.

Wealth creation: Global lessons for India’s journey

As per the report, unlike most developed markets, India’s pathway to wealth inclusion could be unique, as it is being built on population-scale digital public infrastructure, real-time payments, digital identity and rapidly expanding mobile connectivity.

It noted that no international model can be replicated directly but added that global experience highlights a common principle — wealth participation expands when investing is embedded into everyday financial behavior, supported by trusted institutions and delivered through simple, scalable customer experiences.

The report highlighted key learnings that India can adopt as follows:

• Scaling technology responsibly: Technology and AI have the potential to dramatically expand access to financial guidance and personalized engagement. However, scale must be accompanied by strong governance, transparency, accountability and safeguards that preserve investor confidence.
• Making investing simple and accessible: Mass-market participation increases when investment journeys are intuitive, accessible and easy to navigate. Simplicity reduces barriers to entry, but it should be balanced with appropriate suitability checks, investor education and long-term financial wellbeing.

India has opportunity to combine principles for success

The most relevant lessons from global experience are not product-specific or market-specific, as per the report. They are principles that consistently drive broader participation and better investor outcomes, and India’s DPI ecosystem provides a unique opportunity to scale these principles nationally, it added.

“India’s opportunity is to combine these principles with its unique digital public infrastructure ecosystem. The resulting model should be embedded in everyday financial journeys, powered by responsible technology, governed by trust and measured by long-term wealth creation outcomes rather than account openings or product sales,” it noted.

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