Article
Mapping Digital Financial Inclusion and FinTech Studies in India: Bibliometric Trends and Future Directions+
The rapid development of digital financial technology has changed how financial services are accessed, used, and benefited from in India, changing the financial inclusion paradigm. To assess the intellectual structure, thematic development, and fields of emergent research in digital financial inclusion, fintech, and banking performance, a bibliometric synthesis of 338 peer-reviewed articles published in the literature between 2012 and 2025 was conducted. The study uses Biblioshiny to identify a clear trend in the literature: the shift from early interest in online banking, trust, and risk to later attention to digital lending, mobile wallets, and fintech ecosystems. According to the research, the discipline is still in disarray with little synthesis between behavioral adoption research, systemic banking performance research, and sustainability-focused research. However, publication output has rapidly increased due to policy benchmarks like demonetization and the coronavirus-fueled digital explosion. Global comparative findings are limited by patterns of collaboration, which show strong local networks but poor global connections. Additionally, trend analysis indicates a significant potential for future research and a relative lack of themes in resilience, green finance, and green innovation. According to the studies, digital financial inclusion research in India has generally emerged as a thriving and policy-relevant field. However, to address more challenging issues related to stability and competitiveness, the field needs to become more integrated and globally connected to the financial system's sustainability.