Kristen Castell, managing director of the Delaware-based company, Center for Accelerating Financial Equity (CAFE), the nonprofit advancing financial health and wellness to low-income communities, notes how organisations must focus on the impact they are having on people’s lives when looking to make a profitable business.

“More than ever, fintech companies are being judged on how they treat their stakeholders, not just their shareholders. The last few years – there has been an accelerating focus by the market, fueled by investors, on understanding how a company treats its people (i.e supply chain, employees) and the environment (i.e efficiency of operations) because those risk factors are important to long-term (financial) value of a company. Take the politicised acronym ‘ESG’ out of it!

“Bottom line is it’s good business for fintechs to provide both shareholder and stakeholder value. Especially now with the globalisation of information through the internet and social media, companies have a spotlight on everything they do – and cannot just sell products anymore but need to focus on providing what’s important for the quality of people’s lives. All of us, especially the large low-to-moderate-income (LMI) populations throughout the world demand it.”