Digital financial inclusion and socioeconomic sustainability in Saudi Arabia examining drivers disparities and policy pathways

This study explores the evolution, determinants, and disparities of digital financial inclusion (DFI) in Saudi Arabia from 2011 to 2021, including the initial post-COVID-19 phase. Although our data are cross-sectional, we infer changes over time by comparing results across four waves of the World Bank’s Global Findex surveys (2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021). Using multiple Probit regressions, we examine the drivers of DFI across demographic, socioeconomic, and infrastructural dimensions. While Saudi Arabia has made notable progress in digital finance, gaps persist among women, individuals with lower education, low-income groups, and the unemployed. Access to mobile phones and internet connectivity significantly enhances DFI, highlighting the importance of digital infrastructure. To ensure the reliability of our findings, we conduct two sets of robustness checks. First, we use seemingly unrelated estimation (SUEST) to jointly test the equality of coefficients across probit models. Second, we construct a latent DFI index via Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) and re-estimate the model using both OLS and probit frameworks. These robustness checks confirm the consistency and direction of the main effects, particularly the gender gap and the role of income, education, and mobile access. As one of the first systematic analyses of DFI in Saudi Arabia using Global Findex data, this study offers timely insights into the country’s inclusive digital transformation. It emphasizes how expanding equitable access to digital financial services can support broader goals of socioeconomic sustainability, reduce structural inequalities, and contribute to the Vision 2030 agenda. The findings offer practical guidance for policymakers seeking to build inclusive and sustainable digital financial ecosystems.