There has always been a demand for the financial sector to tackle inclusivity through diverse employment, tech innovations, and education.
The pandemic highlighted the importance of technology and the role it can play in providing the right services to communities that cannot physically access resources. However, financial exclusion has also been exacerbated by the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis – in May 12.9 million UK adults were recorded as having low financial resilience. That is 1 in 4 of all UK adults.
With an increase in financially vulnerable people, and with digital exclusion affecting an estimated 9 million Brits last year alone, inclusivity within the financial sector is now more important than ever.
We highlight five apps tackling the challenges of diversity and inclusion.
SteadyPay was cofounded in 2017 by John Downie who is also the acting CEO. The app supports the growing number of zero-hour and gig workers in the UK who have restricted access to credit. This results in an increased reliance on payday loans and overdrafts. SteadyPay provides users with access to credit for top-ups if their salary falls below their average income in exchange for a weekly subscription fee.
Thus, protecting users from unexpected absences such as sick leave or the inability to secure consistent shifts, resulting in volatile pay.
They also partner with credit agencies giving users the ability to build their credit scores. The app is providing an alternative solution for a challenge that, millions of Brits face.
Financielle was launched last year by sisters Laura Pomfret and Holly Holland. The app is a financial education and help platform aimed at equipping women in their financial journey, and addressing issues such as the gender pay gap, the financial impact of maternity leave, and social pressures.
The content is curated to reflect the challenges that women face daily, something that is rarely discussed within the financial sector.
“Financial products are built for men, by men” says co-founder Holland. With only 30% of the fintech industry being female, Financielle is paving the way for inclusivity for women.
Invstr was founded in 2013 by Kerim Derhalli. After leaving his role as global head of equity trading at Deutsche Bank he set out to democratise finance through tech with the app Invstr.
Their mission is to empower people to take charge of their financial future through education, resources, and provide the opportunity to become confident investors. Invstr pro allows users to track and improve performance through stats and personalised investment picks with portfolio builder whilst Invstr Jr offers trust accounts for kids to learn, bank, receive allowance and invest.
They have also created a fantasy finance game, which allows users to manage a virtual $1 million investment portfolio so they can learn about markets before risking their own money. With a unique product offering, Invstr is set to be a dominant force in the industry.
Neat was founded in Hong Kong in 2015 by David Rosa. The platform is designed to make international trade more accessible to entrepreneurs and SMEs across the world.
Neat has a variety of functions including the ability to open an account and receive and transfer multi-currency funds, issue corporate cards to employees, integrate with accounting and payment gateways. Through its membership with Visa, Neat can issue their payment products and tap into Visa’s global network.
Corporate credit cards are often difficult to acquire for start-ups and SMEs with requirements of three years of audited evidence to qualify for low spending limits.
Since their launch they have opened more than 28,000 customer accounts, helping businesses located in over 35 countries.
Tumelo was founded by Cambridge University students William Goodwin, Georgia Stewart, and Ben King when they were campaigning for the sustainable investment of their university’s £6 billion fund. The app is designed to make investors more socially responsible for the millions of ordinary people who contribute to the investment system. By allowing users to make investments in a portfolio of companies related to areas such as diversity and inclusion and sustainability, the app will help change an investment system that is failing to address social, environment and governance challenges.
They also provide investment data to existing investment advice providers through a monthly fee for access to the dashboard and transparency API. Their partners include Aviva, Stewart Investors and Legal & General investment management and more.
If you would like to learn more about how a hard-hitting PR strategy can help your app engage new audiences get in touch today.
