India’s government thinks so. Plans for such a bank – the first state-run one of its kind in India – were announced in the annual budget. Finance Minister P Chidambaram said the bank was likely to be launched in October, with an initial capital of $184m (£120m), and will be run by the government. The bank will employ women, lend mostly to women and “address gender-related issues, empowerment and financial inclusion”, he said. On the face of it, a bank for women appears to make sense. Just 26% of women in India have an account with a formal financial institution, compared with 46% of men. That means an account in either a bank, a credit union, a co-operative, post office or a microfinance institution, according to a recent study by the World Bank. With more and more women going to work in India – and a larger number of them in the informal economy – a bank for women, say its supporters, helps empower and provide financial security.

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