By John Thompson, Chief Program Officer, Financial Health Network A main goal of the BlackRock Emergency Savings Initiative is to build and integrate better savings tools to help individuals, especially those with low-to moderate-income, save. My team at the Financial Health Network has done extensive research on the current savings crisis to better understand the…

The features of the financial services landscape that have brought today’s consumers convenience, reduced friction, and easily accessed revolving credit have now been with us for so long that we view them as fixed infrastructure. These gains have been accompanied by a loss of some of the tools and habits of mind that helped the grandparents and great-grandparents of today’s Millennials make it through two world wars and the Great Depression.

By Tanya Ladha, Director, Financial Health Network Financial technology companies, or fintechs, have altered consumer’s approach to their financial lives and financial health. Whether someone wants to save more, budget better, track their spending, or all of the above, there are many apps to support those efforts. Fintech companies can reach consumers anywhere, anytime, with…

Anuraag Tripathi and Meenakshi Lakshmanan founded Manifest to create a seamless retirement transfer solution. Currently, most 401(k) transfers are done manually, which is a tedious process. It’s estimated that nearly 90% of people who start a transfer, don’t complete the pen, paper, fax, and mail process. With more people changing jobs, the number of accounts […]

MedPut is an employee benefit program that provides 0% financing and bill negotiation services for out-of-pocket medical bills, with no impact to an employee’s credit score. Founders Stefan Sharma and Harsha Puvvada share their story. Q. What was the problem in the world that inspired you to start your company? We launched MedPut after observing […]

Data plays an important role in improving consumers’ lives. While there are some risks to sharing data online, with the right safeguards in place, consumer data can provide powerful insights into people’s financial lives that financial service providers can use to develop products, programs, and solutions to improve their customers’ lives.

By Laura Cummings, Director, Financial Health Network Amazon’s new Credit Builder secured card has ignited debate and dialogue about access to credit and the role secured cards can play in helping or harming consumers. We often hear about the millions of Americans who are deep in credit card debt, which points to the downside of…

Eight financial technology entrepreneurs focused on delivering innovative financial health solutions chosen to join lab created by the Financial Health Network and JPMorgan Chase Lab to continue focusing on helping startups improve and scale solutions for populations who face difficulty managing their financial lives, such as people of color, low-income women, aging Americans and individuals […]

Keeping a cache of savings for use in emergencies is hard. And it’s hardest for low and moderate income households whose incomes are often volatile and who thus need to tap emergency savings most often.

Installment loans’ appeal, in comparison to credit cards, are the fixed terms — a year or two or three — and equal payment amounts that automatically commit a borrower to paying off the debt.

Our research shows that employees are struggling financially and are looking to their employers for solutions. The EMERGE workshop represented a doubling-down on our commitment to working with employers, payroll and benefits providers, workers’ representatives, thought leaders, and policymakers to solve employees’ financial challenges.