Andrea Lagna, Programme Director of the MSc in Digital Transformation, tells us how fintech can advance financial inclusion and help build a more equitable, inclusive, and sustainable world.
Fintech – short for financial technology – refers to the design and application of digital technologies within the financial services industry. Both established firms and new entrants are leveraging data, mobile platforms, cloud computing, blockchain, and artificial intelligence to reshape how they deliver services such as:
- Payments
- Credit
- Savings
- Investment
- Insurance.
Fintech aims to make these services more efficient, user-friendly, affordable, and accessible from anywhere. Importantly, fintech innovation has emerged as a powerful force for greater inclusion and equity.
Bridging the access gap to financial services
By expanding access to financial services for those historically excluded – particularly the poor and marginalised – fintech supports what is known as financial inclusion. This is not merely a technical objective; it is a moral imperative.
An estimated 1.2 billion adults around the world remain unbanked, lacking access to even basic financial services. The problem is especially acute in low-income countries. Yet fintech solutions are already helping to bridge this gap.
A notable example is M-Pesa in Kenya. This is a mobile phone-based money transfer service that has enabled millions to store and transfer money securely using mobile phones. Innovations like M-Pesa have the potential to reduce poverty by:
- Facilitating savings
- Supporting small-scale entrepreneurship
- Lowering the cost of remittances.
Even in high-income economies, fintech can improve inclusion.
In the UK, for instance, the London-based company Plend offers an alternative to traditional credit scoring and lending. Its approach challenges exclusionary credit models and addresses a key driver of financial inequality in high-income societies.
These developments reflect fintech's broader potential to:
- Improve financial well-being
- Empower low-income individuals
- Reduce systemic inequalities.
Global institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and United Nations increasingly view fintech as a critical enabler of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those focused on poverty eradication, gender equality, and decent work.
Yet, the promise of fintech to make the world a better place comes with significant risks.
Ethical and responsible fintech
Algorithmic lending tools, for instance, often rely on opaque data and decision-making processes that can reinforce systemic biases and deepen exclusion. High-interest digital loans, though marketed as accessible and convenient, may instead trap vulnerable users in cycles of unsustainable debt.
The widespread collection and monetisation of personal data also raises profound concerns about surveillance and data ethics. These challenges are not incidental - they are structural risks that, if left unaddressed, could undermine the very goal of fintech-led financial inclusion.
At Alliance Manchester Business School, our MSc in Digital Transformation empowers students with the strategic insight, technical fluency, and ethical mindset needed to steer fintech-led financial inclusion toward meaningful and lasting positive change.
Drawing on our impactful research and real-world case studies, students explore several key areas of responsible fintech. Students learn how:
- Fintech firms can embed social missions into their business models
- Digital technologies can be used to expand access to financial services
- Different stakeholders can collaborate to build supportive ecosystems for fintech-led financial inclusion.
They also investigate what motivates fintech founders who pursue social missions. Most importantly, students critically assess the real-world outcomes of fintech innovations: Are they empowering people and reducing poverty, or are they creating new risks through debt and data exploitation?
Understanding fintech's double-edged nature —its potential to empower or to exclude—is essential. Only by confronting both the benefits and risks of fintech innovation can we ensure it becomes a truly ethical, inclusive, and sustainable force for good.
