Latest news with #financialTools
Fast Company
02-06-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
How employers can help workers break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle
A recent study from PYMNTS concluded that two in three Americans fall into the category of living 'paycheck to paycheck.' The term generally means that a worker can make ends meet and pay for basic necessities, but has little or no money for savings or unexpected expenses. But this very prevalent problem goes deeper. The issue lies in that people are expected to budget for two weeks or a month at a time. The stark reality is that it is incredibly challenging to forecast their needs in two-week increments as opposed to managing their costs on a daily basis. Compounding the problem is today's economic uncertainty. Everyone is watching and wondering what will happen with inflation, tariffs, and recession fears while monitoring the rising prices of gas, food, and basic necessities. With this uncertainty comes the question: How will these forces affect jobs? And for people living paycheck to paycheck, this stress is even more acute—especially when there is no safety net or financial cushion to fall back on. As employees face uncertainty around making ends meet, employers have a unique opportunity to help ease some of those pressures. But simply offering a pay raise does not necessarily address the obstacles that workers face on their path to financial security. To break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle, employees need to be equipped with tools that empower them to take control of their financial lives. Research shows that most workers actually look to their employers for help with their financial health. This speaks to the change in expectations from workers. In the past, when the employee's workday was done, whatever happened until they showed up for work the next day was no business of the boss. But times have changed. Employees now bring their stress about money from home to the workplace, and this can show up in the quality of their work. Workers who are financially stressed are less productive, less engaged, and frequently call out sick —and this is costing companies billions of dollars each year. Instead of actually being sick, many workers are also calling out to their day jobs so they can do a gig job for the day to get paid when their shift ends. Over one in three (36%) people in the U.S. workforce, or about 57 million Americans, have a gig job either as their primary or secondary job—a dramatic increase from just a few years ago. The reason for many is to work somewhere where they feel in control of their financial outcomes. It's now become a financial imperative for companies to provide the tools for their employees to succeed and bring the best version of themselves to work each day, and to help them alleviate the stressors that are preventing them from succeeding at work. Here are three ways you can help your employees break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle and establish a level of financial security. 1. FACILITATE FINANCIAL EDUCATION Knowledge is power—yet balancing a personal budget is not taught in most schools. For many workers, especially those just starting out in their career journeys, offering concrete, actionable financial education can be incredibly valuable. This education should be relatable and include relevant areas that impact workers on a daily basis, including learning how to create and stick to a daily budget. Understanding their daily costs for rent, car payments/transportation, and utilities is critical to understanding their spending money. 2. PROVIDE SHIFT MANAGEMENT OPTIONS The needs and expectations of today's workforce have evolved, especially coming out of the global pandemic five years ago. They crave flexibility and a sustainable work-life balance. When employees have the option and flexibility to pick the shifts that align with their needs and priorities, they can be more engaged and productive. This also helps empower them to take extra shifts to help their bottom line and meet their own financial responsibilities. 3. OFFER FINANCIAL WELLNESS BENEFITS In a 2024 survey, over one in three Americans said they were charged a late fee on a bill in the previous 12 months. For someone living paycheck to paycheck, each late fee is another step toward falling into the never-ending cycle of debt. Oftentimes, a late fee is a result of the misalignment of a bill and the timing of the paycheck. Employers now can offer financial wellness benefits such as on-demand pay that enables workers to pay bills on their own schedule (full disclosure: DailyPay offers this solution). By empowering your employees with choice and flexibility with their pay, they can avoid late fees, incur less credit card debt, and avoid expensive options such as payday loans to make ends meet. The greatest asset of any company is its people. Success is directly related to the day-to-day success of your workforce, so are you doing enough to make them successful? Are you equipping them with the tools they need to bring their best to work? Because when they succeed, you succeed. The time is now to support your employees on their financial wellness journey and help break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle once and for all.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Could first-time buyers turn to tech to help save for a home?
When you combine rising living costs with high house prices and mortgage rates, things aren't exactly looking up for first-time buyers. Given this outlook, it would be easy to despair. But instead, many are turning to tech-savvy savings tools to help them achieve that seemingly impossible feat: getting on the housing ladder. One common approach is to use smart apps to help save money for a deposit and track spending to identify any outgoings that can be trimmed back. First-time buyers are also using these apps to access higher interest rates than those offered by some high street banks*, helping them reach their target faster and more efficiently. One of the most popular is Plum, which is available to download for free via the App Store or Google Play. Here's how it could help you buy your dream home... First-time buyers are using smart savings apps to put money aside for a deposit Savings apps: The modern-day piggy bank More and more people are making the most of the powerful tech offered by smart apps. In Plum's case, it connects to your bank account and uses clever algorithms to figure out what you can afford to save before setting it aside on your behalf every so often. This might only be a few pounds at a time, but done regularly, even small amounts mount up. And because the app doesn't take too much and leave you short, you shouldn't need to raid your house fund to pay a bill that drops a week before payday. Plum helps you maximise your savings with a series of 'Auto Saver' features, some of which are free and others available on a paid subscription. These include Pay Days, which save a predetermined amount each time you receive your salary. Automating your saving with Plum helps you save little and often in the background, so you're constantly progressing towards your goal even when you're not thinking about it While many of us will still want a payday treat, sending a chunk of cash straight to your savings reduces the chance of any regrets. And if there's a particular retailer that you often turn to at these times of temptation, why not enable the Naughty Rule? This lets you automatically save a sum of money when you buy from somewhere you deem a guilty pleasure, adding a silver lining to any impulse purchases. Whatever Auto Savers you choose, you're always in control – with the option to increase or decrease the size of your deposits at any time. Turning micro-savings into a mortgage The ability to automate saving has proved attractive to people working towards big money goals, like getting on the housing ladder. And as they've grown, apps like Plum have now become even more useful to first-time buyers by offering popular tax-free savings products at highly competitive rates of interest. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. Tax-free savings… and then some! One product many use to get on the housing ladder is the Lifetime ISA, which allows you to save £4,000 towards a first home (worth up to £450,000) or retirement. How Plum keeps your money safe You work hard for your money, so you'll want to ensure every penny you put away is protected. Money held in a Plum Easy Access Interest Pocket, Lifetime ISA or Cash ISA is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to a total of £85,000 per customer. There are also protections for a non-interest earning pocket, like a Primary Pocket, which is covered by the E-Money Safeguarding Rules. The Plum app also supports encryption and face and fingerprint ID for added security. And if you ever need help, their friendly customer support teams are available 7 days a week. Click here for more information on how your money is protected with Plum. The government then adds a 25 per cent bonus to whatever you save, up to £1,000. So, if you put away £4,000 – which counts towards your annual £20,000 ISA allowance - you end up with £5,000! This money grows further thanks to a great 4.75% AER (variable) interest rate for the first 12 months, including a 1.14% AER (variable) bonus, with any interest payments free from tax. If you're buying your first home, you can access any money in your Lifetime ISA once it has been open for at least 12 months. Accessing your savings for other reasons before the age of 60 could incur a 25 per cent penalty, so take a moment to make sure you won't have to. But if you do decide to opt for one, opening a Plum Lifetime ISA couldn't be easier. Simply head to the app and answer a few quick questions (including one checking that you're aged between 18 and 39). Note that you may not be a good fit for LISA. With the exception of eligible withdrawals, a 25% withdrawal fee applies and by this you could receive a lower return than what you initially paid for. LISA rules may change. Tax treatment is subject to your personal situation. And now protect the rest UK taxpayers can save a total of £20,000 in ISAs every year, so if you've used up £4,000 on a Lifetime ISA, you'll still have £16,000 of your allowance left. Cash ISAs let you set aside this money without paying tax on your interest. The personal allowance is £1,000 for basic rate taxpayers and £500 for those on the higher 40 per cent rate, so if you're acing the savings game, you might already be liable. A major bonus of the Plum Cash ISA is its competitive rate of up to 4.95% AER (variable), which includes a bonus rate of 1.66% AER (variable) for the first 12 months. The interest rate for ISA transfers is 3.29 per cent AER (variable). You can open a Cash ISA with Plum without paying a subscription fee. And you can withdraw in one business day, with no additional charges. Nice! Plum Cash ISAs offer a competitive rate of up to 4.95% AER (variable) Support on your home-buying journey Let's be honest: technology is never going to be a silver bullet that makes it easier to save towards a home. But by combining automatic saving with competitive rates on ISA products, apps like Plum could help a priced-out generation finally make their first step on the housing ladder. So go on - see what you could achieve when you start small... Try Plum TODAY by downloading it for free from App Store or Google Play. Plum is the trading name of Plum Fintech Limited and Saveable Limited. Plum Fintech Limited is registered and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 836158). Saveable Limited is authorised and regulated by the FCA (FRN: 739214)
Finextra
12-05-2025
- Business
- Finextra
Why Creator Platforms Need Embedded Finance: By Jelle Van Schaick
The creator economy is growing fast. What was a $100 billion market in 2023 has more than doubled, and it's not slowing down. But if you look under the hood, it becomes clear that the infrastructure supporting this boom is lopsided. Most of the energy and investment has gone into the front-end — platforms, audience tools, content monetisation. The back-end, the financial stack, is still trailing behind. Creators today are building brands and businesses on top of fragmented, outdated financial tools. Their workflows are digital, global and fast-moving. Their financial infrastructure is none of those things. That's where embedded finance comes in. The Financial Stack Isn't Built for Creators Creators don't earn like traditional businesses. Income is irregular and comes from multiple sources: ad revenue, sponsorships, subscriptions, live streams, tips, merch, affiliate sales. The revenue graph looks more like a heartbeat monitor than a salary slip. Add to that the complexity of cross-border income and you start to see why standard financial tools don't work. Traditional banks see unpredictability and label it as risk. But fintech can take that same volatility and build programmatic control around it. The core issue is that financial services for creators haven't been built at the workflow level. Tools aren't integrated into where creators already operate. They're tacked on, bolted in or left entirely to third parties. The result is friction, delays, and missed opportunities. Embedded Finance as the Infrastructure Layer What creators need isn't a better bank account. They need a financial system that is natively integrated with their workflow, built into the platforms they already use. Embedded banking enables this by offering modular, API-based financial services that can be embedded directly into creator platforms. Done right, it shifts the financial experience from a separate, friction-heavy process into something contextual and seamless. This is exactly the kind of shift that vertical ERPs (VERPs) have unlocked in other industries; embedding payments, compliance, and finance tools into operational workflows. The benefits for creators are immediate: Revenue can be received and spent without delay Tax and compliance can be automated in the background Financial visibility improves as earnings are consolidated across sources Creators gain control without becoming financial experts This kind of vertical integration isn't just smoother. It changes the economics. Tips can be spent instantly. Revenue can be visualised in one place. And everything is compliant by default, not by afterthought. What the Next Wave of Fintech Needs to Build Embedded finance unlocks an entirely new set of possibilities for creator platforms. Here are a few that fintechs should be building for right now. 1. Income dashboards with context Creators need to see where their money comes from and what it means. How much is recurring? What's taxable? What's likely to drop off next month? A dashboard that just shows balances isn't enough. It needs to surface insight. 2. Credit based on engagement, not FICO Traditional credit models don't work here. But a creator with 100,000 engaged followers has built a business with real earning potential. That signal can be underwritten. Embedded finance lets platforms use engagement and transaction data to create alternative credit scoring models. 3. Embedded tax and financial services Creators rarely have a finance team. But they still need help with taxes, budgeting, and compliance. Financial education and services should be native to the platform, not something they're expected to find elsewhere. A simple tax assistant that handles cross-border income, VAT, or quarterly filings would add huge value. 4. Dynamic payouts and income smoothing With embedded banking, platforms can offer customisable payout logic. Daily, weekly, after a set threshold. Even better, they can offer income smoothing — giving creators more stability without debt, using predictive modelling and reserves. This kind of workflow-first thinking is critical to making financial services genuinely useful. 5. Risk-adjusted lending and advances By owning the financial data and workflows, platforms can offer low-risk advances or micro-loans based on platform history, not just banking history. This is a major unlock for creators looking to scale. The Real Opportunity: Infrastructure, Not Interfaces The future of the creator economy hinges on infrastructure. It's not just about building better tools for content creation, but about enabling the systems that handle the financial complexity behind a growing creator business. Fintech is in a prime position to deliver that foundation. The challenge is to move beyond simple payments and address the entire workflow. Embedded finance provides a clear model for doing this, offering financial services that are integrated, flexible and nearly invisible to the end user. For platforms that take this approach, the upside is significant. For creators, it means moving from reactive survival to proactive growth.
