Strategic Pillars

Commonwealth influences and engages with employers to prioritize worker financial security; fintechs and the financial service industry to bring products to market that better serve financially vulnerable people; and policymakers to pass legislation and take action to enable savings and financial security and opportunity for all. 

Our approach to systemic change is driven by actionable data and insights, innovation, and partnership with major private and public-sector actors. Our north star remains enabling financial security and wealth building for all. Commonwealth’s current strategy is built on four strategic pillars:

In addition, our cross-cutting work in support of these pillars includes: 

  • Integrating nonfinancial factors (e.g., the role of social networks and a journey mindset) into solutions design and 
  • Ensuring that the needs, wants, and aspirations of financially vulnerable people are integrated into emerging technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence/big data and blockchain).
  • Advancing financial security, savings, and potentially wealth building for LMI households through ARPA/Tax credit policy 

Commonwealth’s Strategic Pillars
FOR FINANCIAL SECURITY AND OPPORTUNITY

Our strategic pillars: Emergency Savings, Wealth Building Savable Funds, Financial Security as a Priority, Positive Financial Futures, Emerging Tech for All, and Tax Credits

Emergency savings is the foundation of financial security, yet too few people living in the United States—disproportionately Black, Latinx, and women-led households—have liquid funds to manage day-to-day volatility and unexpected expenses. Commonwealth designs, tests, and drives scale adoption of innovative solutions to dramatically expand the supply of quality savings options for people living on low-to-moderate incomes. As partners in BlackRock’s Emergency Savings Initiative, we elevate awareness of the emergency savings crisis in the U.S., and spur complex systems with reach and scale to enable millions of low- and moderate-income (LMI) people to become more financially secure.

Establishing financial security and stability is critical, but to achieve prosperity for all, we must create systems that enable financially vulnerable people to build wealth. Commonwealth is developing a new generation of innovative wealth building tools and pathways suitable for the 21st century. We identify opportunities for innovators and stakeholders across sectors to have sustainable impact on the wealth gaps by income, race, and gender so that wealth can truly be possible for all. 

People need available funds to save or to build wealth. To enable financial security, and ultimately wealth creation, we must find ways for all people to have more “slack” in their budgets. Commonwealth is uncovering strategies to reduce fees incurred, lower debt payments, and reduce recurring non-essential expenses to create more slack in household budgets. We are working closely with financial institutions and fintechs to address these barriers, find savings opportunities, and design and pilot tools to connect newly savable funds to savings products. 

Providing financial security for all workers demands bold action from corporations and their leaders. We produce rigorous consumer research, policy insights, and practical solutions, and convene leaders and innovators for meaningful dialogue and action. We also build the case for the importance of worker financial security among investors. 

Supporting Strategies

Becoming financially secure requires having a positive balance sheet and believing that financial security is attainable for yourself and your community. Financial systems must be intentionally designed to enable these outcomes. We work with actors across all sectors to design equitable and accessible products, services, experiences, distribution channels, and policies that include impactful nonfinancial factors (e.g., inclusive messaging, social networks, and more) to enable enduring systemic change and build financial security and opportunity for all.

Emerging technologies—today expressed as technologies such as big data-powered artificial intelligence (e.g. chatbots and virtual assistants), machine learning, cryptocurrency, and blockchain/distributed ledger solutions—are evolving rapidly. These transformational technologies provide new and creative ways to improve financial security and opportunity for all, but also carry new risks if distributed unevenly. Commonwealth is working to ensure that the needs of financially vulnerable people are integrated into solutions by partnering with financial services leaders, fintech entrepreneurs, social impact innovators, nonprofits, and others shaping the financial system to harness these powerful emerging technologies to benefit financially vulnerable people and their businesses. 

Many families count on tax refunds, using them to pay down debt, build up savings, and make deferred purchases. With recent changes to the tax code, these refunds may be much larger than ever for some households—up to $10,000 more than usual for some. If these changes are extended, this presents an unprecedented opportunity in advancing financial security, savings, and potentially wealth building for LMI households.