Accessible Digital Banking For Society’s Most Vulnerable People

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The Problem

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  • There are 12.11M adults in the UK with a recognised disability, of which 7.15M have accessibility needs

  • Accessibility doesn’t just apply to people with disabilities – all users have different needs at different times, often remaining undiagnosed

  • 43% of UK adults with digital access needs do not use banking apps to manage their finances

Digital banking is now an essential part of everyday life, yet current banking apps offer limited accessibility for those who need it. This doesn’t just apply to people with disabilities – all users have different needs at different times, with many remaining undiagnosed.

The reduced independence, increased frustration, stress and isolation can easily lead to mental health issues and potential financial exclusion for society’s most vulnerable people.

What Are Accessibility Issues?

Real world examples

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Neurological

Mohammed has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and finds text easier to read if it’s highlighted in blue as it’s being read out loud on his mobile. He needs to be able to adjust the highlight and text colours, so text is readable with sufficient colour contrast.

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Sensory

Elizabeth has partly blurred and unclear vision and finds it hard to read texts that do not have strong colour contrast. She needs screen magnification, high contrast themes and occasional screen reader capability to access mobile apps.

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Physical

George has limited hand movement and uses custom gestures on his smartphone. He wants a visible focus indicator to know what element on the page has focus so when gestures are used on his mobile, he will know what element will be activated.

The accessibility problems of today are the mainstream breakthrough of tomorrow.

Eve Anderson

Director, Accessibility Engineering Google

 What’s needed is an inclusive digital banking solution that’s accessible for society’s most vulnerable people.

 

What Is BankAbility?

An ‘accessibility first’ Open Banking solution that automatically optimises the user-experience for everyone regardless of disability, age, device or operating system.

It enables people to manage their finances and everyday lives via a single dashboard.

This will be a game changer for people with sensory, neurological and physical disabilities such as mobility, dexterity, vision, hearing, autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dementia and other mental health needs.

 
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Inclusion

Ease of Use

Ease of Use

Accessibility

Accessibility

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Open Banking

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AI Driven

BankAbility

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Our Mission

To improve the lives of society’s most vulnerable people by building the world’s most inclusive digital accessibility technology.

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Our Vision

To build a solution enabling everyone with access needs to easily manage their digital banking.

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Our Values

Integrity, trust, respect, inclusion, innovation, simplicity.

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Our Pledge

To donate 10% of annual profits to our charity partners.

I believe the ‘BankAbility’ app will create a significant positive social impact. I support the important work Digital Ability is undertaking in the hope of eradicating the health impacts and financial exclusion faced by those with accessibility needs.

The Rt. Hon. Lord Blunkett

Our Team

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David Agar

CEO

David is a highly experienced tech sector entrepreneur specialising in creating value and scaling innovative and disruptive businesses in the UK/EU/USA. He previously led a FinTech start-up from FCA license to launch in multiple EU markets.

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Prem Gorecki

CTO

Responsible for creating and implementing our technology strategy, Prem has many years CTO and product management experience delivering innovative multi-channel financial products across multiple markets in the fintech and banking sectors.

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Penny Roberts

Director Of Partnerships

Penny is the ultimate strategic partnerships builder! She’s developed multi-million £ relationships with global enterprises during the last 25+ years, and leads partner engagement with corporate sponsors and disability charities.

Carolyn Cooper

Head Of Finance

Carolyn is an ACCA qualified management accountant and has worked in the mobile communications and technology sectors, providing ethics and professionalism in strategic financial management for over 20 years.

Board Advisors

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Steve Robertson

Compliance, Risk & Regulatory

MBA qualified Steve is a Chartered Director with 30+ years experience helping FCA/PRA regulated firms to become authorised, managing their ongoing compliance and regulatory obligations.

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Clive Loseby

Digital Accessibility

TED Speaker and global leader on digital accessibility, Clive created the world's first accessible website, and has a formidable team of specialist UX designers and disability testing panellists.

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Leslie Whiteford

Financial Planning

A CFO with over 40 years global experience delivering increased stakeholder value in highly regulated financial services markets and companies including E*TRADE, PWC & KPMG.

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Clive Henly

Business Transformation

An experienced chair and senior director in the credit union sector, for 30+ years Clive has led major business change programs with Experian, RBS, Lloyds and other major banks.

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Muryel Boulay

Environmental, Social & Governance

Working for large multinational corporations, including M&A experience, Muryel understands that purpose and culture is key to positive sustainability and long-term value creation.

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Graeme K Whippy MBE

Disability & Accessibility

Graeme is a disability expert and acknowledged change agent, furthering the inclusion of people with disabilities for Lloyds Banking Group, the RNIB and the DWP for over 20 years.

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Vanessa Buckle

Consumer Finance & Marketplace

Vanessa is a financial services and ecommerce expert with 25 years experience, including building award winning revenue streams and Board reporting for MoneySuperMarket.

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Merton Smith

Business Development

Merton is an accomplished CRO / CCO with over 30 years’ global experience in Fintech, Banking, Payments and Digital, leading and executing growth strategies across multiple markets.

 
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Luthais McCash

Data Science

RSS Fellow and Chair of the Mathematical & Theoretical Physics Group at the renowned IoP, Luthais is an AI/ML expert who has developed mathematical algorithms for some of the world’s most complex problems.

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Alex Manners

Neurodiversity & Autism Speaker

A neurodiversity speaker and author, Alex presents talks on ‘My Life Living with Asperger’s’ as well as Asperger’s in the workplace to some of the world’s leading companies including Ford and Coca Cola.

 

Accessibility is a basic human right.

Sarah Herlinger

Director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives - Apple

 

Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG)

We are committed to maximising value for all stakeholders and shareholders by integrating environmental, social, and governance factors systematically into everything we do.

In this way we will contribute to the sustainable development of society whilst satisfying the needs of our customers, employees and communities.

 
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How we interact with the environment

BankAbility’s key environmental impact is energy consumption: servers, offices and employee travel.

We will build an environment impact policy with a net zero impact.

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How we engage with society and communities

The core of our business focuses on accessibility and inclusivity, supporting the wider community and all its diverse ability individuals by creating employment and contributing to the local economy.

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How we manage the company to ensure accountability and efficiency

From its inception, BankAbility has concentrated on bringing an expert group of experienced advisors which will ultimately translate into a diverse Board.

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Partner

As a social impact company focussed on enabling everyday financial inclusivity and accessibility, we are looking to partner with organisations and individuals who can help us to improve the wellbeing of society’s vulnerable people through financial inclusion.  

To find out more about partnering with BankAbility, please contact us.

 

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