Meet the 2022 Exchange grantee partnerships improving finhealth through access to public and private benefits. Learn More
Through September 2023, the Exchange Challenge is focused on the financial health of people who use public and private benefits. While government actors and employers are critical to making improvements, the nonprofit and fintech sectors can also play a role in better serving the individuals, families, and communities navigating benefits systems.
We are proud to award the 2022 grants to three partnerships that will work to provide solutions in the areas of financial coaching, housing, and child care.
Individuals and families navigating both public and private benefits systems often experience significant challenges to their financial health. Moreover, these systems themselves can pose complications for the very people trying to utilize them. Key opportunities to smooth the benefits journey may include new ways of:
The government response to the economic disruption caused by COVID-19 demonstrated how benefits systems can serve as a crucial safety net for individuals, households, and communities. According to Financial Health Pulse® data, people who applied for and received unemployment benefits or debt relief were more likely to be able to pay their bills on time than applicants who did not receive benefits or relief.
Now that eviction moratoria have ended and the future of other forms of relief remains uncertain, connecting individuals to public benefits is critically important. Access gaps and the complexity of benefits systems prevent many Americans from taking advantage of programs that could safeguard their financial health.
At the same time, benefits provided through the workplace, such as financial coaching and savings programs for emergencies and retirement, have become more relevant in today’s tight labor market and amid an uptick in unionization efforts. Not only that, research has found that workplace and public benefits systems can in fact complement each other in advancing financial health.
Across the U.S., nonprofits assist individuals with benefits screening and eligibility. Fintech solutions can also help individuals monitor their benefits and help practitioners match clients with the right benefits for them. Partnerships between these sectors can help millions of people who need streamlined access to benefits to safeguard their quality of life.
For the 2022 Exchange Challenge, we welcomed applications from emerging or existing nonprofit-fintech partnerships working on:
Learn more about what we looked for in applicants.
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