Human insights
for finance
Finthropology helps organizations to understand people’s financial behaviour and innovate to meet their needs.
We apply our cutting-edge knowledge of human behaviour to help create successful financial products, programs and policies for a human world—and a fast-changing market.
We use rigorous, proven methods from the social and behavioural sciences, creating insights for companies, not-for-profit organizations and government bodies.
We can work with you end-to-end or join you on a specific part of your discovery and design process. Co-design is integral to our approach.
“Wealth is the ability to fully experience life.” - Henry David Thoreau
Services
All our work is research-based and driven by insights from our engagement with end-users across multiple studies and projects.
We can help you:
Understand how and why people use your solutions the way they do.
Financial behaviour can be complex—and surprising. We carry out fieldwork around the world, using methods like observations, interviews, digital ethnography, portable kit studies and more. This ranges from interviews with a small group of customers to large, mixed methods studies.
Identify how potential customers choose financial solutions.
How do people choose financial services, given that there are so many options available? Our research shows that most people prioritise convenience, control and value. But there are key differences in people’s preferences, depending on their demographics, culture and socioeconomic situation. Our analysis helps you understand and engage customers.
Learn how money culture works in a market that is new for you.
Culture has a strong impact on financial behaviour. We combine interviews with users, experts and partners with descriptions of markets and culture to build a robust understanding of money cultures. This includes both real life and virtual environments.
Innovate solutions for the future.
Our innovation processes are driven by our deep understanding of both digital transformation and changes in people’s financial behaviour. Uncovering the preferences and needs of people, businesses and governments in a changing world creates insights that help build better solutions for the future, including cutting-edge technology and sustainability.
Build a human-centric research approach.
Many organizations struggle to develop a solid approach to researching people. Whether you are beginning your research journey or are quite advanced, we can provide advice and workshops on approach, methods, analysis, and coordination across your organization. with ideas of how to get started, how to take a next step and particularly how to take advantage of qualitative methodologies.
Expertise
We use insights from science to understand how people manage their money, make decisions, and interact with financial tools.
Sustainable investment, utilities payments, and blockchain are just some of the financial tools helping us to build a sustainable world.
Financial behaviour is influenced by culture as much as individual factors. Anthropology helps us understand group thinking and behaviour.
How we feel about our finances impacts our ability to manage them effectively. Effective financial services take emotions into account.
Financial health means both having your finances in order and feeling good about them. How are your customers faring?
Consumers and organisations alike face a complex digital landscape, from cash to crypto to CBDCs. We help you understand users.
From open banking to open insurance and crowdfunding, finance is decentralizing and democratizing. We help you understand this shift.
Financial tools can help close the gender wealth gap. We help you to understand how to reach women.
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![Western Sydney University: A 5-year project on mobile finance among farming households in Laos and Cambodia.]()
Western Sydney University: A 5-year project on mobile finance among farming households in Laos and Cambodia.
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![SICPA: Qualitative research on payments in rural and urban Brazil to inform CBDC design.]()
SICPA: Qualitative research on payments and financial decision-making in rural and urban Brazil to inform CBDC design.
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![Filene Research Institute: Research on the growth of Buy Now, Pay Later services in the USA.]()
Filene Research Institute: Research on the growth of Buy Now, Pay Later services and customer behaviour in the USA.
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![Maiden Labs: Analysis of qualitative research on financial behaviour and CBDCs in Nigeria, Mexico, India and Indonesia. Watch this space.. Image from Wikimedia Commons.]()
Maiden Labs / MIT Digital Currency Initiative: Analysis of CBDC research in Nigeria, Mexico, India and Indonesia.
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![ACIAR: A market scan of finance and value chain mobile apps for farmers in six SEA countries.. Photo by Erin B. Taylor.]()
ACIAR: A market scan of finance and value chain mobile apps for farmers in six SEA countries.
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![EWPN / Unblu / Keen Innovation: A study of how Swiss women make payments decisions while on the move.]()
EWPN / Unblu / Keen Innovation: A study of how Swiss women make payments decisions while on the move.
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![Findexable: Interviews with professionals in finance about workplace diversity and its contribution to innovation.]()
Findexable: Interviews with professionals in finance about workplace diversity and its contribution to innovation.
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![Filene: Small Credit Union Collaboration]()
Filene Research Institute: A study of how small credit unions collaborate in the USA, featuring case studies of seven credit uions.
“Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.” - Albert Einstein
Team
Dr. Erin B. Taylor
Director and Co-Founder
Erin is an anthropologist based in The Hague. She specializes in how people’s financial behaviour is changing along with innovation in financial services. She holds a PhD from the University of Sydney, Australia, and has carried out ethnographic research in the Caribbean, Africa and Europe. Erin is especially interested in how culture and group belonging influence people’s actions and decisions.
Dr. Anette Broløs
Director and Co-Founder
Anette is a fintech analyst based in Denmark. She is an experienced network leader working with strategic innovation and partnerships. Experienced speaker and facilitator. She holds an industrial PhD in collaborative innovation and has a background in economics. Anette has extensive work experience in finance including consultant work on the implementation of PSD2 and six years as CEO of Copenhagen FinTech Innovation and Research.
Matthew Levasseur
Senior Analyst
Matt combines anthropological insight with digital transformation expertise to help organizations understand and serve their customers better. His unique background spans from field research in Haiti to digital product leadership at major U.S. health plans, bringing together behavioral expertise with proven implementation success. Matt holds degrees in Anthropology and Psychology from Marlboro College and an MBA/MS in Healthcare Policy from Brandeis University.
Tessa Veldhorst
Designer
Tessa is a graphic designer and photographer based in The Hague. She has fifteen years of experience working across different industries. At Finthropology she leads design thinking for client products and services. She also creates our reports and infographics, translating data into visually appealing insights. You can see more of her work at De Schaapjesfabriek.
