New Report: How do we build a resilient future for consumers in digital finance?
As digital finance continues to grow, innovation is improving consumers’ everyday lives in many ways. New technologies are bringing broader access, smarter tools, and faster, easier transactions. However, for many consumers, especially those in low- and middle-income countries, these changes are not translating into meaningful improvements in financial outcomes.
To begin with, many more consumers qualify as financially vulnerable than traditional definitions might suggest. As many as 75% of us are highly exposed to risks such as scams, income loss, and climate shocks that weaken our financial resilience. Most of us will experience financial vulnerability at some point in our lives, and this will only become more of a challenge as consumers and economies face greater disruption from environmental and technological change.
And while progress has been made to develop and implement regulation to protect consumers, what is written in law is not full translating into meaningful progress in consumer outcomes.
Today, Consumers International launches a new report, Building Consumer Resilience in Digital Finance, outlining a guiding star for a more resilient digital finance system. Made possible with support from the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, the report shifts the focus to real consumer outcomes, outlining key steps for all stakeholders to embed protection, inclusion, and trust into the design of digital finance.
Drawing on consumer research across eight countries and regulatory analysis in thirteen jurisdictions, the report highlights the gap between protections that exist on paper and the daily realities faced by people experiencing financial vulnerabilities beyond their control.
The challenge: Turning Support into Systemic Change
The latest Findex data shows that, while 79% of adults globally now hold a financial account, too many still face risks that undermine their financial well-being. New research across eight countries shows that up to 75% of consumers are considered vulnerable to some degree in today’s digital finance environment, and this materially influences their financial outcomes:
- 52% of consumers in higher vulnerable circumstances have been victims of scams, vs. 19% of consumers in lower vulnerable circumstances.
- 61% of consumers in higher vulnerable circumstances have difficulty seeking redress, vs. 38% of consumers in lower vulnerable circumstances.
These figures underscore what the report identifies as a “protection-outcomes gap.” While most regulators report progress in implementing consumer protection laws, the lived experience often tells a different story.
For instance, regulators in a sample of 55 countries report that over 90% of the G20/OECD High-Level Principles on Financial Consumer Protection have been fully or partially implemented. However, when consumers in those same countries are asked about their confidence in meeting basic needs, such as emergency medical costs, monthly bills, saving for retirement, or school fees, only around 30% say they are not worried at all.
The result? A system that offers financial access but does not meet the daily needs of consumers.
To build a future where digital finance truly works for everyone, we must move beyond measuring success by access alone and ensure that protection, trust, and meaningful consumer outcomes are at the heart of financial systems.
A guiding star for resilience by design
To close the outcomes gap, the report outlines a “guiding star” framework for action, shifting from reactive regulation to proactive design.
This means:
- Understanding and recognising consumer resilience as the critical foundation for financial inclusion and economic growth.
- Proactively embedding the consumer voice into product and policy innovation and practices.
- Strengthening financial supervision and enforcement and sharing information on challenges across borders.
- Empowering consumer organisations to evolve and become partners in agile and accountable systems.
What it takes: action across the ecosystem
Policymakers are called on to move beyond box-ticking compliance to anticipate risk and monitor outcomes. This process is underway in some countries. In Malaysia, new policies now require providers to support consumers experiencing vulnerability at every stage, from design to redress. In Brazil, outcome-based regulation is driving financial education across the entire consumer journey. In the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority has introduced regulations under its Consumer Duty to move from process-based compliance to consumer outcomes.
Innovators and business leaders also play a role in consumer resilience. The report includes numerous examples of market players investing to align business and consumer goals.
Consumer organisations are a powerful, often underused force. Organisations like CADEF in Nigeria work with the Central Bank to strengthen digital finance protections for people with disabilities. In Rwanda, ADECOR helped shape three major national policies in just two years.
The road ahead: People-centric digital finance
This report is part of a broader effort to reimagine digital finance with consumers at its centre. It calls on us to design systems that not only include people but also truly support them in thriving. By focusing on protection and outcomes together, we can build a future where digital finance is inclusive, safe, data-protected and sustainable.
Consumers International works with its Members in 200 countries, as well as regulators, providers, and consumer advocates, to bring this vision to life.
Join us
The promise of a digital finance future is undermined without building consumer resilience. We are all financial consumers, and together, we have the power to shape systems that are safer, more inclusive, and built for real-world needs. But unlocking that potential requires more than access. It demands investment, innovation, and partnerships to ensure the consumer voice is built into digital finance from the outset.
We encourage industry, philanthropy, regulators and other market leaders to invest in strong, scalable, consumer-led initiatives that turn consumer insights into lasting impact.
LEARN ABOUT OUR Fair Finance WORK
To learn how you can support our work in fair digital finance, contact: impact@consint.org.
