25. Can Mobile Money Replace Cash in India?

In this chapter, we research the introduction of mobile money in India and its developments to replace cash since 2010 amongst migrant workers in South India. Fieldwork included exploring the role of middlemen in this broad ecosystem as well as understanding whether individuals feel a sense of trust with the use of mobile money. Empirical findings report that, on average, there was a higher and regular transfer of money (regular monthly and emergency money) by users as compared to non-mobile users. Specifically, regression results show that mobile money users transfer money 64 % more often than non- mobile users. It also shows that mobile money users transfer about 44 % more emergency money than non-mobile users. Results also tell that usage also increases with age, education and marital status as well as greater frequency of interstate transfer of cash by mobile money users.