As the world grows ever more connected, access to financial tools has expanded dramatically. Today, 79% of adults worldwide have a bank account, an increase from 51% in 2011. This is a remarkable gain.
Developed by EARN, a fintech focused on improving the financial health of working families, SaverLife helps Carolyn and thousands of others across America put a little money aside each month to prepare for life’s unexpected costs. By incentivizing people to regularly save a small amount of money, SaverLife sees people take their savings accounts from empty to a small cushion to protect them from car breakdown costs, medical expenses or overdue electricity bills.
Community spaces are what bring people together. In trying and often dividing times, they can be a source of joy and connection. However, the level of capital funding required to bring these long term projects to life can be difficult to fundraise for.
In recent years, there’s been a lot of buzz, and skepticism, about Sweden’s efforts to move to a cashless economy. Other countries are following suit. In the place of physical cash, these economies are increasingly using credit, debit, and mobile payments for financial transactions. One central criticism of cashless economies is that the reliance on technology will exclude vulnerable populations – those who are most likely to be unbanked or have low digital literacy or technology access.
ABLE accounts allow eligible individuals in the disability community to build assets for today’s needs and invest for tomorrow. Monies placed into an ABLE Account permit a new way to save money without losing eligibility for certain means-tested benefit programs like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Communicating new topics to investors often requires new operational processes, personnel, and data; disclosure can work as an organizational forcing function. Corporations are wrestling with this in the context of sustainability and long-termism.
The interest from the investment community in ESG disclosures is growing at a rapid pace, with no sign of slowing down. The shift is requiring more parts of the organization to be involved, with levels of transparency being asked that simply wasn’t before. What do investors expect and how do all stakeholders push ESG disclosure forward?
MetLife Foundation and Visa Inc., with global nonprofit Accion and World Bank Group member IFC, announced the winners of the Inclusive Fintech 50, a competition launched in February to help early-stage fintech companies attract capital and resources to benefit the world’s 3 billion financially underserved people.
Fair Trade USA announced today that it will increase its minimum price and premium for cocoa by 20 percent as of October 1, 2019 to move farmers closer to a living income and reduce the extreme poverty and child labor that is prevalent in West Africa’s cocoa fields.
Consumer demand for healthier products continues to grow. With concerns ranging from the cost of healthcare to the effects of food and agriculture on climate change, consumers of all ages are opting for natural, organic and functional foods and beverages, nutritional supplements, natural medicines and other eco-friendly products from mission-based companies that share their values and address their concerns.
Everyone’s financial journey is different. We make intentional efforts to meet the individual needs of clients and communities through a diverse range...
Highlighting the top news, commentary, and research for the week coming from SHQ. The highlights newsletter also spotlights one profiled organization...
