Citi Foundation
Financial Capability & Asset Building
Approximately 2.5 billion people, just over half of the world's adult population, do not use formal financial services to save or borrow money1. Research indicates that access to financial products and services such as savings, payments, and credit that are tailored to the needs of lower income and unbanked people can make a positive impact in their lives, enabling them to participate in the economy. Yet, even as they gain exposure and access to financial services, limited capability to understand options and terms of use of available products can further hinder their economic stability. Achieving proficiency in making short-term and long-term financial plans, attaining associated goals, understanding and selecting suitable financial products as well as implementing strategies for dealing with financial adversity are critical elements for establishing economic security over the course of their lives.
Financial capability represents a critical shift of moving beyond financial education to adopting new behaviors that individuals can use to identify and utilize appropriate financial tools and make sound financial decisions in order to build and preserve their assets over time.
Financial capability among consumers is an essential element to achieve financial inclusion.
Our Strategy
The Citi Foundation is deeply committed to financial inclusion for low- to moderate-income individuals, families and communities. In 2004, Citi announced a 10-year, $200 million commitment to meet the growing financial education needs of the communities we serve. Although we accomplished our initial goals and commitment well ahead of schedule, our work is not finished. In 2010, we invested nearly $20 million in Financial Capability and Asset Building programs globally because we recognized that an important change was needed–one that redefines financial education from simply increasing knowledge alone to helping people adopt financial behaviors that facilitate asset building and preservation. We support a range of programs, including testing new models and program strategies, building the capacity of community partners to adopt new financial capability approaches, implementing systems changes and best practices in the field, and, increasingly, evaluating/measuring results and impact of initiatives. Our direct service grants employ a more comprehensive approach that combines financial knowledge and skill-building with ongoing coaching and access to appropriate financial products and services provided by nonprofit partners for low- to moderate-income people to improve their financial outcomes.
1 Chaia, A., Dalal, A., Goland, Tony, Gonzalez, M., Morduch, J., et al. (2009). Half the World is Unbanked. Financial Access Initiative
Examples of Our Leadership
