Impact Wallet

Inspiration

We identified a critical disconnect in modern lifestyles: people are spending heavily on impulsive convenience—like frequent food delivery and unused subscriptions—while simultaneously feeling a growing urgency to support social and environmental causes.

Many want to contribute to sustainability, but their financial disorganization leaves no room for it. The inspiration for Impact Wallet lies in bridging this gap: we realized that by simply curbing these wasteful habits, we could unlock a powerful stream of funding for philanthropy, transforming daily "financial mistakes" into tangible support for NGOs and a healthier planet.

What it does

Impact Wallet is a concept for an Open Banking assistant that transforms financial discipline into social impact. It operates on two core mechanisms:

"Save-to-Give" Model: Users set a monthly budget for specific problem categories (e.g., Food Delivery & Subscriptions). When the user stays under the limit, the app calculates the savings and allocates a small percentage to a chosen NGO. In return, the user earns Impact Points, convertible into rewards.

Commitment Mode: An optional feature for users needing stricter control. If the budget is exceeded, a "Solidarity Round-Up" activates on subsequent purchases, donating the difference to charity as a constructive reinforcement mechanism.

Expected Results

For Users: A measurable reduction in discretionary spending and improved financial literacy. For Society: A continuous, diversified stream of micro-donations for NGOs, reducing their reliance on sporadic fundraising. For the Market: Increased engagement with sustainable brands through our rewards ecosystem.

Team Motivation

We are a team of digital natives who experience the problem of "financial waste" firsthand. We are motivated by the challenge of using technology not just to build another banking app, but to build a behavioral tool that solves a real societal paradox: the gap between wanting to do good and having the financial discipline to afford it. Participating in this initiative allows us to bridge the gap between technical innovation and social responsibility. We are driven by the opportunity to prove that financial apps can be ethical, educational, and impactful, turning the "pain" of saving money into the "pleasure" of helping others.

Challenges & Value

The main conceptual challenge was balancing "punishment" with "motivation". We solved this by designing a Circular Economy: the user saves money, the NGO receives funding, and the user gets rewards from sustainable partners. This aligns the product directly with SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption) and SDG 3 (Health and Well-being).

What's next for Impact Wallet

The next step is moving from the design phase to technical implementation, specifically:

Prototype Development: Build a functional MVP to validate the core "Save-to-Give" mechanism, specifically testing the Open Banking integration for real-time expense tracking and the automation of donations.

User Validation: Conduct usability testing with the target audience to gather feedback on the gamification elements and refine the balance between financial discipline and user rewards.

Strategic Partnerships: Establish initial collaborations with key stakeholders: NGOs to validate the donation flow, and retail brands to build the rewards ecosystem.

Technical Exploration: Deepen the investigation into Open Banking APIs for seamless connectivity and explore AI/Machine Learning algorithms to automatically detect unused subscriptions and suggest personalized budget optimizations.