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Current Population Survey Unbanked/Underbanked Supplement
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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation sponsors the National survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households to collect data on the number of U.S. households that are unbanked and underbanked, their demographic characteristics, and their reasons for being unbanked and underbanked. This survey was conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau as a special supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The first survey was conducted in January 2009 and the second was conducted in June 2011. With the rich demographic and geographic data available through the CPS, this survey continues to present a wealth of previously unavailable data on unbanked and underbanked households at the national, state, and large metropolitan statistical area (MSA) levels.
Detailed Methodology
Approximately 54,000 households monthly.
The Unbanked/ Underbanked questions were asked of all interviewed households, as appropriate. Items S1 and S1a establish how knowledgeable the interviewee is regarding the household finances. Item S2 determines if anyone in the household has a checking or savings account. Items S2a and S2b determine who has an account and the type of account. Those who respond as having no knowledge of or did not specify their level of involvement in the household finances were not asked any further questions. Item S2e identifies households that currently have an account, but were unbanked at some point within the last 12 months. S2g-S2h ask about different methods used to access the account. Items S3-S7 are asked of unbanked households. Item S3 determines if the household was previously banked.
Items S5-S6f gather reasons why the household does not currently have an account in a mainstream financial institution. Item S7 applies to all unbanked households and asks about the likelihood of them opening an account. S101- S187 apply to all households, regardless of their banking status. These questions ask about the use of certain financial products and services that are most commonly used by the unbanked and underbanked population. The questions also ask about frequency of use and reasons why the household chooses to use alternative financial service providers or products, as opposed to mainstream financial institutions.