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Improve customer financial wellbeing in financial services

Almost half (47%) of UK adults don’t feel confident making decisions about financial products and services. Financial service providers like banks, fintechs, pensions providers and credit unions can make commercial gains by building their customers’ financial wellbeing.

Technology has fundamentally changed the way people manage their money. It’s easier than ever to borrow, invest and save. And yet, the financial services sector still faces widespread lack of understanding among customers of financial products and services, debt and basic money management.

Even before the pandemic, our research showed key areas of low financial capability:

  • 22% of people could not read the balance on a bank statement
  • 20 million adults with a current account don’t know their account balance within £50
  • Nearly nine million people are over indebted.

(Financial Capability Survey, 2018)

In the wake of Covid-19, with more financial stresses and online banking, it’s more important than ever to build customers’ financial wellbeing.

We are an arm’s length body of government, transforming financial wellbeing in the UK: We’re here to ensure every person feels more in control of their finances throughout their lives: from pocket money to pensions. Why? Because when they are, communities are healthier, businesses are more prosperous, the economy benefits and individuals feel better off.

Our services are free to your organisation and your customers – we offer financial guidance, research and partnership to help build financial wellbeing for individuals and for organisations.

Financial wellbeing is about feeling secure and in control. It’s knowing that you can pay the bills today, can deal with the unexpected, and are on track for a healthy financial future.

In short: feeling confident and empowered.

Money and Pensions Service

We collect a range of data to build a picture of financial wellbeing, including:

  • access to a meaningful financial education
  • use of credit to pay for essentials
  • level of saving
  • level of indebtedness, and
  • knowledge and confidence to plan for and in later life.

Together with organisations like yours, we are working to deliver the UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing to build this confidence at scale in the UK.

Download the UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing.

Customers experiencing more financial wellbeing can better understand financial products, the risks associated with them and be more confident to make sound, long-term financial decisions and avoid falling victim to scams.

Four ways customer financial wellbeing helps you

  • Customer retention: Customers will be more likely to continue to use your service if they can manage their money well.
  • Customer acquisition: The more people understand the benefits of financial products and services, the more potential customers you have. Expanding your product proposition to include innovative tools and services to help people manage their money better could help grow your customer base, which will have direct commercial impact.
  • Customer value: If a customer can manage their money well, they may be more likely to be able to use a wider range of financial products which have a higher commercial return for you.
  • External reputation: Build your external reputation by showcasing the help you offer to customers to improve their skill and confidence to manage their money, and stand out from their competitors to grow their customer base.
 
Having control over personal finances means that individuals are more resilient when unexpected events happen, they enjoy better physical and mental health, and they’re more able to save for the future.

If more people experience financial wellness, they make better financial decisions and choose the correct financial products for their needs. The financial services sector can help deliver this vision and will benefit directly from it.

MaPS can support the financial services sector by providing insight to help you:

  • increase your knowledge about your customer’s needs
  • support the business case for introducing financial wellbeing into your organisation, products and services, and
  • identify gaps in your customer strategy and inform product and market research.

Whether you’re starting on the journey of boosting employee financial wellbeing, or piloting methods like payroll saving, we can support you. Our partnerships team are based in a location near you, and offer your organisation free, bespoke support, such as:

  • a dedicated partnerships manager based in your region
  • money and pensions guidance content you can embed into your intranet and website
  • opportunities to pilot and evaluate financial wellbeing interventions, and
  • Talk Money Week, our annual awareness week that reaches millions of people each November, to break the taboo of talking about money.
 
Get the latest news on social media, and contact our partnerships team for bespoke support at partners@maps.org.uk.

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Managing money in uncertain times

Guides to support your employees and customers affected by the pandemic or rising living costs