The Covid-19 pandemic — and the trillions in relief dollars that came with it — pushed the number of Americans using banks to its highest level in recent memory.. Just 4.5% of U.S. households were unbanked, the lowest rate since the FDIC began tracking it in 2009.Why? Nearly half of those newly-banked households said government payments issued during the pandemic contributed to their decision to open an insured bank or credit union account.
For business owners, the Paycheck Protection Program, which ultimately paid out $785.7 billion across 11.3 million forgivable loans made in 2020 and 2021, was a catalyst. Many of the earliest recipients were businesses that had an existing relationship with a bank. Minorities are more likely to be unbanked, according to the study. Just 2.1% of white households were unbanked, compared to 11.3% of Black households and 9.9% of Hispanic households. Early reports on the PPP also showed theBut the unbanked rate approved across the board compared to 2019, when 2.5% of white households, 13.8% of Black households and 12.2% of Hispanic households were unbanked.
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