How real leaders think about financial inclusion
Jaye Hackett
Last week we gathered thirty founders, compliance leads and financial services executives in London for Building Secure, Inclusive Financial Systems.
We did it to push the conversation around financial inclusion forward, and show what it really looks like: product excellence and commercial advantage, not a tired corporate social responsibility talking point.
Moderated by our own Nkechi Anyanwu, the panel featured:
- Chloe Coleman (Vouchsafe) – building universal, digital-ID-ready KYC infrastructure
- Joe Kinvi (Borderless) – powering diaspora investing for the African community
- Steve Round (SaaScada) – creating flexible banking engines for modern needs
- Prerna Goel (Project Nemo) – helping financial institutions embed accessibility and inclusion in core design
We made a lucky guess about the timing of the government’s new financial inclusion strategy, which was on everyone’s mind.
Here are the themes that emerged during the discussion:
1. Access is only the starting point
Too many products stop at “being available.” Proper inclusion is when people can confidently use financial tools, regardless of language, literacy, ability or background.
2. Good friction can build trust
The panel challenged the industry’s obsession with frictionless experiences. Prerna noted that the right pause in the right place, like a confirmation or a moment to process, can make finance clearer and safer for everyone.
3. Security and inclusion go hand in hand
Chloe showed how better verification technology can still maintain bank-grade security while flexing to different user contexts — proving that safety and simplicity aren’t opposites.
4. Inclusion is smart business
Joe reminded us that underserved doesn’t mean unprofitable, sharing examples of investor syndicates he works with: “Impact is good, but profit keeps it going.”
Steve echoed this, describing how inclusive design reduces drop-off and expands lifetime value, while warning about the dangers of second-glass ghettoised products.
The night ended with a challenge to the room: to stop treating inclusion as an add-on and start treating it as infrastructure; the foundation of trust in finance.
You can see some more photos from the event here.
Missed this one? We have a packed online event programme to round out 2025.
Our next event, The Community Finance Growth Playbook, dives into how credit unions can scale safely through automation and inclusive KYC. Sign up here.
