SANTO DOMINGO.- Bank credit granted to women in the Dominican Republic almost quadrupled in the last decade, with an accumulated growth of 281%, going from RD$99,341 million in 2014 to RD$378,968 million at the end of 2025, according to data compiled by the Association of Multiple Banks of the Dominican Republic (ABA).
The information is part of a technical note prepared by its Directorate of Economic and Banking Studies, which analyzes the evolution of female access to the Dominican financial system.
In addition to increased access to financing, women are showing better payment behavior. According to figures from the Superintendency of Banks, the delinquency rate for loans granted to women is 1.4%, while in the male segment it reaches 2.05%.
Financing for women as individuals includes consumer, mortgage, and commercial loans, reflecting that the banking system addresses financial needs in various areas, from entrepreneurship to homeownership or the development of personal projects.
As a result of this dynamic, female participation in the banking system's loan portfolio increased from 35% in 2014 to 39% in 2025, demonstrating progress in reducing gaps in access to financing.
Progress is also seen in access to savings products. While in 2014 accounts belonging to women totaled 2.2 million, by 2025 they had reached 3.7 million, for a cumulative growth of 68%, higher than the increase recorded in men's accounts (52%).
Thanks to this evolution, female participation in holding savings accounts went from 47% to 49.9%, practically achieving equality in access to this type of financial instrument.
According to data from the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic, this progress is also related to greater female participation in the labor market, which went from 39% in 2014 to 45% in 2025.
Opportunities to expand financial inclusion
Despite these advances, women's participation in accessing credit remains below that of men, highlighting challenges that require comprehensive strategies between the public and private sectors, as well as the elimination of structural and cultural barriers.
Among the initiatives to promote this process, the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code (We Finance Code) stands out , which seeks to expand access to credit for businesswomen by collecting data disaggregated by gender.
These statistics allow for the design of more effective strategies to address the needs of this segment, including training, mentoring, and business formalization mechanisms.
The banking sector believes that moving towards greater financial inclusion for women not only contributes to social equity, but also strengthens productivity, expands the business base and promotes the country's sustainable economic growth.
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