s the future of money rapidly approaches through digital finance tools like Bitcoin, stablecoins, and crypto innovations, it is clear we must act promptly and with deliberation to ensure our coming digital economies are resilient and inclusive. These efforts require multi–sectoral collaboration that collectively works to prioritize participation of communities that have traditionally been excluded.
Digital Finance Holds Promise, for Those with Access
Emerging digital finance solutions are reshaping how people store, transfer, grow their savings, and build generational wealth for their families. These new financial tools can be powerfully inclusive, potentially lowering transaction costs, expanding cross–border commerce, and giving individuals ways to interact with digital financial ecosystems outside traditional baking systems. Yet without deliberate, thoughtful design, they risk reinforcing the very inequalities they aim to solve.
Today, nearly 1.4 billion adults remain unbanked—many of them women, rural populations, and those in the informal economy. The technology exists to change this. What we are missing—and must build—is a collective commitment to inclusion.
Multi–Sector Partnerships are Essential
A multi–sectoral approach—uniting governments, tech innovators, financial institutions, civil society, and community leaders—is key to building that collective commitment. Public–private partnerships can accelerate infrastructure development, from mobile internet access to digital ID systems. Regulators can create frameworks that support innovation while safeguarding users. Private sector companies can do more to invest in organizations aiming to improve digital finance access in under–connected communities.
Financial inclusion efforts that succeed do so because they are not top–down—they are built in tandem with, not just for, the communities they serve.
Women Must Be at the Center of the Digital Economy
Women are critical to global economic resilience, yet remain disproportionately excluded from financial systems. Bridging the gender gap in digital finance means more than creating accounts—it requires tools tailored to women’s needs, investment in digital literacy, and policies that remove barriers to access.
When women gain control over their finances, families thrive, businesses grow, and communities become more stable. Inclusion shouldn’t be seen as an outcome of digital finance, it should be seen as the strategy for building a successful digital economy.
Redefining Success for the Future of Money
Our measure of success must evolve beyond profit–centric models and embrace economic systems that prioritize equity, representation, and long–term resilience. That means inviting diverse voices into every stage of design and governance—and measuring success through participation, not just adoption.
The digital economy is being shaped now. The question is: will it be inclusive by design, or exclusionary by default? A multi–sectoral approach ensures we build a future of money that works—for everyone.
a global affairs media network
Participation is power—and success—with digital economy
Photo by Marc Najera on Unsplash
April 29, 2025
The future of money is digital, and we must act promptly to ensure the transition brings us to digital economies that are resilient and inclusive. This means rethinking what success in this new economy looks like, writes Anastasia Dellaccio.
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s the future of money rapidly approaches through digital finance tools like Bitcoin, stablecoins, and crypto innovations, it is clear we must act promptly and with deliberation to ensure our coming digital economies are resilient and inclusive. These efforts require multi–sectoral collaboration that collectively works to prioritize participation of communities that have traditionally been excluded.
Digital Finance Holds Promise, for Those with Access
Emerging digital finance solutions are reshaping how people store, transfer, grow their savings, and build generational wealth for their families. These new financial tools can be powerfully inclusive, potentially lowering transaction costs, expanding cross–border commerce, and giving individuals ways to interact with digital financial ecosystems outside traditional baking systems. Yet without deliberate, thoughtful design, they risk reinforcing the very inequalities they aim to solve.
Today, nearly 1.4 billion adults remain unbanked—many of them women, rural populations, and those in the informal economy. The technology exists to change this. What we are missing—and must build—is a collective commitment to inclusion.
Multi–Sector Partnerships are Essential
A multi–sectoral approach—uniting governments, tech innovators, financial institutions, civil society, and community leaders—is key to building that collective commitment. Public–private partnerships can accelerate infrastructure development, from mobile internet access to digital ID systems. Regulators can create frameworks that support innovation while safeguarding users. Private sector companies can do more to invest in organizations aiming to improve digital finance access in under–connected communities.
Financial inclusion efforts that succeed do so because they are not top–down—they are built in tandem with, not just for, the communities they serve.
Women Must Be at the Center of the Digital Economy
Women are critical to global economic resilience, yet remain disproportionately excluded from financial systems. Bridging the gender gap in digital finance means more than creating accounts—it requires tools tailored to women’s needs, investment in digital literacy, and policies that remove barriers to access.
When women gain control over their finances, families thrive, businesses grow, and communities become more stable. Inclusion shouldn’t be seen as an outcome of digital finance, it should be seen as the strategy for building a successful digital economy.
Redefining Success for the Future of Money
Our measure of success must evolve beyond profit–centric models and embrace economic systems that prioritize equity, representation, and long–term resilience. That means inviting diverse voices into every stage of design and governance—and measuring success through participation, not just adoption.
The digital economy is being shaped now. The question is: will it be inclusive by design, or exclusionary by default? A multi–sectoral approach ensures we build a future of money that works—for everyone.
