Need help reading this page? Click to activate Recite Me popup.

£100 billion opportunity: how digital banking can transform the financial lives of UK households

Lloyds Banking Group
Published on: 11 May 2026
2 min read
  • New research commissioned by Lloyds Banking Group identifies £100 billion in value that digitally enabled financial empowerment could unlock over the next decade – equivalent to around £3,500 per household.
  • Lower-income households could see up to £31 billion in combined benefit over the next decade if digital tools are developed with accessibility in mind.
  • Only half of UK adults feel financially empowered – yet 57% say access to better digital tools, information or guidance could change that.
  • Jas Singh, CEO Consumer Relationships at Lloyds Banking Group: “Advances in digital tools can be a gateway to people better understanding their money and feeling more confident about the choices they make with it.”  

 

Digital tools that enable financial empowerment by supporting consumers to take control of their financial lives could unlock £100 billion for households over the next decade, according to new research commissioned and published by Lloyds Banking Group.  

The research finds that a combination of tools that are available today and new advances that are close to market – from AI-powered budgeting alerts to digital investing recommendations and smarter debt management tools – could deliver the equivalent of £3,500 per household over a 10-year period by empowering people to manage their financial lives more effectively.

 

Lives empowered, a nation empowered: helping the nation make the most of its finances

If the benefits of digitally-enabled financial empowerment were realised at scale across the UK population, what could be the total value to the nation over the next decade?

Read the report

The report, Lives empowered, a nation empowered: Helping the nation make the most of its finances, led by Professor of Financial Economics John Gathergood of the University of Nottingham, combines academic evidence and economic modelling to identify seven key areas in which the financial empowerment of the nation can alter real-life outcomes. It examines how greater use of data-driven digital tools could improve outcomes for UK households across investing, debt, mortgages, credit access and insurance, while strengthening households’ financial capability and enabling more informed money management.

The benefits are felt across all income groups. Those with savings and mortgages stand to make the largest absolute gains – but the largest relative gains, as a proportion of income, accrue to lower-income households. For this group, the main benefits arise from smarter debt management, improved credit access and choice, plus better money management and financial capability. The total benefits across all use cases are worth £31 billion for this group over the decade and could be genuinely transformative. But capturing that potential won’t happen without genuine investment in accessible, inclusive digital design – and a commitment to reaching those who need it most.  

New consumer research underlines the scale of unmet need. Only half of UK adults feel financially empowered, and more than four in ten don't see a clear path to getting there – even with the right support.
 

"The modelling shows that accelerating the digital transformation of financial services could unlock up to £100 billion of value over the next decade – around £3,500 per household.

That underlines the huge potential of digitally enabled financial empowerment: giving people the confidence, tools and knowledge to take control of their money and improve their financial wellbeing over time.

Realising that potential will require collective action across sectors to ensure digital tools are accessible, inclusive and genuinely useful for everyone."

Jas Singh OBE
CEO, Consumer Relationships at Lloyds Banking Group


The research suggests that when people have access to the right digital tools, at the right moments, they could engage with those financial empowerment opportunities – being better placed to make more informed financial choices and taking greater control of their finances.

For example, mortgage payments are the largest monthly outgoing for most homeowners, yet many households are slow to switch when better deals become available. A timely switch could save £1,600 a year on average, and significantly more for those with larger mortgages. Digital eligibility checkers and pre-approval platforms could help homeowners identify better deals quickly and switch with far less friction.

UK households maintain cash flexibility for a variety of wise reasons. However, improved digital investment journeys and prompts could help people put some of the estimated £430-610 billion held by households over and above emergency savings towards appropriate investment products when the time is right for them. The lives empowered, a nation empowered report forecasts that if 15% of that cash was directed into balanced investments over time, the combination of higher returns and compounding effects could unlock around £40 billion in value for consumers over the next decade.
 

"I was thrilled to be asked by Lloyds Banking Group to lead this research. Understanding the true scale of financial empowerment across the nation is exactly the kind of question that matters for household prosperity. The findings suggest that increasing financial empowerment over the next decade could unlock around £100 billion in economic value for the nation. 

The seven use cases examined are not exhaustive, but cover some of the major areas in people's financial lives, and illustrate where digital tools can make a real difference. The realisation of this value won’t happen overnight, but through steady progress as digital tools become smarter, more personalised, and more widely adopted in daily life."

Professor John Gathergood
Professor of Financial Economics, University of Nottingham

 

Download the press release

Search for press releases by year
 

2026 press releases