“Finance is the nervous system of the modern world — and like any system, it must serve the body, not feed on it.”
We live in a time of unprecedented financial technology and access. In just a few taps on a screen, you can transfer money across the world, apply for a mortgage, or invest in a startup on the other side of the planet. But alongside this technological progress, a silent epidemic festers — the widespread offering of really godawful bad financial services. These are systems, products, and companies that profit from consumer confusion, financial anxiety, and systemic inequities.
It’s time to call it out.
It’s time to change it.
It’s time to build financial services that are truly for the people.
This is a Manifesto of Good Financial Services — a declaration of what financial services should be, what they must stop doing, and how we can reclaim this essential part of our lives.
The Problem: How Bad Financial Services Harm Everyday People
Let’s name it plainly. Bad financial services are everywhere.
They show up as:
Predatory lenders charging 300% APR to desperate borrowers.
High-fee credit cards targeting those with the least financial security.
Subprime mortgage deals that were designed to fail.
Investment products designed to enrich brokers while leaving customers in the dark.
Opaque overdraft fees and penalties that punish financial vulnerability.
Financial ‘advice’ content that shames people for being broke instead of offering tools for systemic change.
At their core, these services:
Exploit a lack of financial education
Profit from consumer vulnerability
Prioritize short-term profit over long-term trust
Deepen cycles of poverty and inequality
Create barriers to wealth-building for underserved communities
Bad financial services thrive in silence — when people don’t know better, or don’t feel they have better options.
We believe that era is ending.
What Good Financial Services Are, and Must Be
A good financial service isn’t just about offering a low fee, slick UX, or catchy marketing campaign. It’s about principles, ethics, and people-first practices.
Here’s what defines good financial services:
Transparent and Understandable
If a product requires a 20-page disclaimer and a glossary of legal jargon to understand, it’s designed to confuse.
Good financial services:
Use plain, direct, human language. Make their fees, rates, terms, and risks obvious and upfront. Allow consumers to clearly see what they’re agreeing to — no surprises, no fine print traps.
Financial literacy should not be a prerequisite for financial safety.
Aligned with Consumer Success
If a customer’s failure is good for a company’s bottom line, the product is broken by design.
Good financial services:
Profit when their customers thrive — not when they fall behind. Build models that align long-term customer financial health with business success. Avoid products like overdraft fees, penalty APRs, and balloon payments designed to profit from consumer missteps.
Accessible and Inclusive
Too many financial services were built for wealthy, already-informed customers. Everyone else gets predatory options.
Good financial services:
Design for the financially underserved — renters, immigrants, gig workers, students, single parents, the credit invisible. Offer fair, useful services regardless of income, credit score, or wealth level. Remove unnecessary barriers, like old-school minimum balances, hidden fees, or geographic restrictions.
Educative and Empowering
Finance is full of intimidating terms and abstract systems. That’s no accident. Bad financial services thrive on consumer ignorance.
Good financial services:
Integrate financial education into every touchpoint. Demystify complex processes like credit scoring, mortgage underwriting, investing, and debt management. Provide tools, not just advice. Show people how to act on information in their real-world context.
Knowledge without action is entertainment. Knowledge plus tools is empowerment.
Tech-Enabled, Human-Centered
Fintech has made financial services more accessible, but many platforms lack empathy and personalization.
Good financial services:
Leverage technology to expand access and reduce costs. Pair automation with meaningful human support, especially for high-stakes decisions like homebuying, debt management, and investing. Use AI ethically — to inform and empower, not manipulate.
Designed for Real-Life Financial Behavior
Many financial products are built on the assumption that people will behave perfectly rationally, which ignores the realities of stress, poverty, trauma, and culture.
Good financial services:
Recognize emotional, psychological, and behavioral aspects of money. Build safeguards and supportive features for when life gets messy — because it always does. Understand that budgeting advice isn’t enough when wages don’t meet expenses, and debt isn’t just about discipline.
Proactively Advocate for Financial Justice
Financial services don’t exist in a vacuum. They shape lives and communities.
Good financial services:
Advocate for fair lending, housing, labor, and wealth policies. Stand against predatory practices and the companies that use them. Invest in underserved communities, not just market to them.
It’s not enough to be “better than the worst.” We have to actively dismantle exploitative systems.
The Future We Envision: Financial Systems That Serve People
What does a world of good financial services look like?
A single mom can access affordable credit without being trapped by fees. A young entrepreneur can build business credit without years of guesswork. A renter can repair their credit without overpriced middlemen. A first-time homebuyer can see exactly what they qualify for, what it will cost, and how to improve their chances — transparently. A gig worker can access benefits and loans designed for their income model. Families can grow wealth without navigating jargon-filled, exclusionary institutions.
It’s a world where financial services don’t feel like a battle or a mystery — but like a toolkit for life.
Why This Matters Right Now
We’re living through a historic wealth transfer, rising financial insecurity, and a growing distrust in institutions. The systems that got us here won’t get us out.
People don’t need more shiny apps offering the same old exploitative products.
They need new systems. New values. New alliances.
The companies and leaders who build those will define the next century of financial history.
Our Commitment
At Revve, we aren’t just building products.
We’re building truth to power.
Power for consumers over their own financial futures. Power for communities to reclaim wealth and opportunity. Power for ethical businesses to thrive without exploiting people.
We commit to:
Designing with transparency, empathy, and integrity. Aligning our profit with our customers’ success. Advocating for the dismantling of predatory financial systems. Constantly listening, learning, and improving.
We believe financial services should be a ladder, not a trap. A bridge, not a wall. A tool, not a weapon.
The Call to Action
If you’re a consumer — demand better.
If you’re a creator — build better.
If you’re an investor — back better.
If you’re a policymaker — regulate better.
Together, we can create a financial system that works for all of us, not just the privileged few.
And it starts today.
Final Word
The old financial system was built on exclusion and exploitation. The new one will be built on transparency, empathy, and empowerment.
We’re here for that future.
And we hope you’ll join us.
???? Optional: Share This Manifesto
If this vision resonates, share this post. Let’s build momentum toward financial services we’re not afraid to recommend to our friends, families, and communities.