Designing great digital products in finance: tackling mental accounting bias

Physical currency has been part of human existence for thousands of years, but its reign is now coming to an end. We are conducting an increasing number of transactions through mobile payments and credit cards—and all the while cash is disappearing. This immense change is accompanied by unprecedented economic shifts and technological innovation. 

New fintech products are emerging every day. Neobanks are starting to look like formidable challengers. Following the path set by start-ups, big tech companies are trying to ride the wave, for example, Apple launching its own credit card. Incumbent players in the financial sector aren’t sitting idle either, experimenting with new digital business models and services.

We at Supercharge believe that innovation needs to be directed by human needs on both the societal and individual level. Technology is an enabler—or sometimes a constraint—but it only provides a means, without defining purposes. This begs the question: what is the driving force behind the countless new financial solutions, and do they, in fact, respond to users’ real needs?