The Hidden Cost of Inequality in Financial Services

The Hidden Cost of Inequality in Financial Services: Why Closing the Pension Gap Requires Action Across FinTech

The conversation around diversity, equity and inclusion in financial services has evolved significantly over the past decade. Organisations across the FinTech industry have become increasingly focused on creating more inclusive workplaces, improving representation and building cultures where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. Yet despite this progress, one inequality continues to remain largely hidden from everyday conversations: the gender pension gap.

In this episode of FinTech's DEI Discussions, Nadia Edwards-Dashti welcomes Rosie Crowley, Director of Transformation, and Rajni Rughwani, Lead Data Analyst at Smart Pension, for a thought-provoking discussion about the hidden financial inequalities that develop throughout people's careers. Together they explore why the pension gap exists, how workplace decisions made today shape financial security decades into the future, and what organisations across the financial technology sector can do to create fairer outcomes for everyone.

The discussion goes far beyond pensions alone. It explores inclusion, mentoring, artificial intelligence, career progression and the responsibility every business has to create environments where talent is recognised based on ability rather than circumstance. For organisations investing in FinTech recruitment, financial technology hiring, and building diverse leadership teams, the conversation offers valuable lessons on how small decisions throughout an employee's career can have lifelong consequences.

Building Careers Through Opportunity Rather Than Convention

One of the strongest themes throughout the conversation is that successful careers rarely follow a perfectly planned path. Both Rosie and Rajni share journeys that demonstrate how different experiences, opportunities and supportive leaders helped shape where they are today.

Rajni explains how she began her career in India's insurance sector before moving to the United Kingdom in 2020. Arriving just as the COVID-19 pandemic began meant rebuilding her career from scratch without an established professional network or UK work experience. Despite her previous experience in financial services, breaking into a new market proved challenging.

The turning point came when an employer chose to look beyond a traditional CV. Instead of focusing purely on previous experience, they recognised her potential and offered her an opportunity to transition into data. That decision completely changed the direction of her career.

Today, Rajni combines data analytics with pension technology while continuing to invest heavily in learning, public speaking and communities such as Women Defining AI. Her story perfectly illustrates how inclusive hiring practices can unlock talent that conventional recruitment processes may overlook.

Rosie's route into pensions was equally non-linear. After working across customer service, retail, sales and financial services, she qualified as an actuary before recognising that the future of pensions would increasingly depend on technology rather than traditional models. Nearly seven years ago she joined Smart Pension, where she has worked across proposition, business management and transformation before taking responsibility for business change, new products, AI initiatives and organisational transformation.

For anyone involved in financial services recruitment, these stories reinforce an important message. Technical expertise matters, but career potential often comes from adaptability, curiosity and transferable skills developed across multiple industries. As organisations continue hiring across FinTech, broadening the definition of experience allows employers to attract stronger, more diverse talent pools.

What Inclusion Really Means in Financial Technology

One of the defining moments of the episode comes when Nadia asks both guests what inclusion means personally to them.

Rosie explains that inclusion begins with fairness, but fairness should never be confused with treating everybody identically. She shares a phrase from her son's school that has stayed with her: "Fair doesn't always mean equal."

That simple sentence becomes one of the central themes of the discussion.

Rosie argues that individuals begin from very different starting points throughout their careers. Career breaks, caring responsibilities and life events all influence someone's professional journey, yet many recruitment and performance systems still assess people through rigid frameworks that fail to recognise these realities.

Using recruitment as an example, she explains that two candidates may possess identical capabilities despite one having an extended career break. If organisations assess both CVs using exactly the same criteria, the process may appear equal while actually producing an unfair outcome.

This distinction is particularly relevant across FinTech hiring, where employers increasingly recognise the importance of skills-based recruitment over rigid career histories. Creating genuinely inclusive workplaces requires organisations to understand context rather than relying solely on traditional indicators of success.

Rajni builds on this by describing inclusion as helping people recognise their own potential before they see it themselves.

She reflects on Smart Pension's mentoring programme, where guidance from an experienced mentor encouraged her to think more strategically about her career, participate in hackathons, build external networks and develop confidence beyond her immediate role.

Rather than simply helping her perform better in her existing position, mentoring expanded her vision of what she could achieve.

For Rajni, inclusion is not simply inviting someone into the room. It means giving them the confidence, encouragement and support to contribute once they arrive.

These experiences demonstrate that inclusive workplaces are not built through policies alone. They are created through everyday behaviours, mentoring relationships and leaders who actively invest in the growth of others.

Understanding the Gender Pension Gap

The heart of the conversation centres on one of the least discussed inequalities within financial services: the gender pension gap.

Rosie shares striking statistics demonstrating the scale of the challenge.

By their late fifties, women hold approximately 48% less pension wealth than men. Significantly, this disparity does not suddenly emerge towards retirement. Research discussed during the episode suggests the gap begins at the very start of people's careers, with differences already visible among younger workers entering employment.

The reasons behind this are complex and interconnected.

The gender pay gap remains one contributing factor. Lower average earnings naturally lead to lower pension contributions over time. Because pension savings benefit from compound growth, even relatively small differences early in someone's career become substantially larger decades later.

Working patterns also play an important role. Women are significantly more likely to work part-time, often due to caring responsibilities. Although these decisions may provide essential flexibility, they frequently reduce long-term pension contributions.

Perhaps the most surprising statistic shared during the episode concerns divorce.

Rosie explains that pensions are often one of the largest financial assets after a family home, yet around 71% of divorce settlements do not properly consider pension wealth. Women are also more likely to give up pension claims during divorce negotiations, contributing to significantly lower retirement income later in life.

The conversation highlights another unavoidable reality. Women typically live longer than men, meaning smaller pension pots must support retirement over a longer period.

None of these issues exist in isolation.

Instead, they accumulate throughout someone's career, creating a compounding effect that becomes increasingly difficult to reverse as retirement approaches.

Importantly, Rosie argues that this should not simply be viewed as a government issue. Employers also have an opportunity to make meaningful change.

She explains how Smart Pension has introduced a policy whereby part-time employees receive pension contributions based on their full-time equivalent salary. By removing one of the structural disadvantages affecting many women, the organisation hopes to improve retirement outcomes significantly over time.

It serves as a practical example of how businesses can actively reduce inequality rather than simply acknowledging it exists.

Why Financial Education Needs to Start Earlier

Rajni believes one of the most effective ways to reduce the pension gap is through education.

She explains that there is no single solution because the inequality itself develops through numerous small disadvantages accumulated across an individual's life and career.

Instead, she advocates helping people engage with pensions much earlier, making information simpler to understand and ensuring communication is accessible to different audiences.

Many people remain unaware of how decisions surrounding maternity leave, career breaks, flexible working or divorce may affect their long-term financial future until much later in life.

By improving financial education earlier in people's careers, employers and pension providers can empower individuals to make more informed decisions before these inequalities become embedded.

AI in Financial Services Creates Opportunities and Responsibilities

As the conversation shifts towards artificial intelligence, Rosie explores another area where fairness and inclusion will increasingly shape the future of work across financial technology.

She acknowledges that AI is already transforming how organisations operate. Processes are becoming more automated, onboarding is becoming faster, and employees can begin contributing value far more quickly than ever before. These developments create exciting opportunities for businesses seeking greater efficiency and productivity, but they also present important questions about equality.

Rosie explains that AI has the potential to lower barriers to entry by giving everyone access to the same tools and technologies. Employees from different educational backgrounds or levels of experience can become productive more quickly, allowing organisations to widen their talent pools and recruit based on capability rather than traditional career pathways.

However, she is equally clear that AI is not automatically objective.

Artificial intelligence learns from historical data, human behaviour and the information it is given. If historical data contains bias, AI systems risk reproducing those same inequalities rather than eliminating them. In other words, if organisations fail to challenge existing assumptions, technology can unintentionally reinforce the very barriers it is supposed to remove.

Rosie makes the point that AI is not gender blind and it is not inclusion blind. The models reflect the people who build them, the information they are trained on and the context in which they are deployed. That means organisations implementing AI across financial services must ensure diversity exists not only in their workforce, but also among the teams designing, testing and governing these technologies.

She also shares a particularly thought-provoking statistic from research discussed during the episode. According to a study referenced from Harvard Business Review, many women actively hide their use of AI in the workplace because they fear it may cause colleagues to perceive them as less competent. Rather than being recognised for embracing innovation, some women worry that using AI could undermine confidence in their abilities.

This highlights another important lesson for organisations investing in AI transformation. Providing employees with identical tools is only part of the solution. Businesses must also create cultures where everyone feels equally confident using those tools without fear of judgement or unintended bias.

For employers across financial technology, this conversation demonstrates that successful AI adoption is about far more than technology. It also requires inclusive leadership, responsible governance and workplace cultures built on trust and psychological safety.

The Power of Representation Across FinTech Careers

Representation remains another central theme throughout the discussion.

Rajni reflects on the contrast between earlier stages of her career and her experience at Smart Pension. In previous roles, she often found herself to be the only woman in meetings dominated by male colleagues. Speaking confidently, challenging ideas and making her voice heard often felt significantly more difficult.

Joining Smart Pension presented a very different experience.

One of the first things she noticed was seeing women throughout meetings contributing confidently, asking challenging questions, sharing opinions naturally and participating fully in discussions. What made the greatest impression was not simply the number of women in the room, but the confidence with which they contributed.

Watching those examples gave Rajni permission to do the same.

She explains that visibility matters because people need opportunities to demonstrate their ideas, contributions and potential. Seeing women already succeeding helped remove the uncertainty about whether she belonged in those conversations.

Her experience illustrates why representation continues to matter across FinTech organisations. When employees see people with similar backgrounds succeeding in leadership positions, technical roles and strategic decision-making, it expands what feels achievable for future generations entering the industry.

For businesses focused on attracting diverse talent through effective FinTech recruitment, visible role models can become one of the strongest competitive advantages in building inclusive cultures. Recruitment does not end once someone joins the organisation. Retention, progression and representation all contribute to creating workplaces where talented people choose to stay and develop long-term careers.

Mentorship and Sponsorship Shape Future Leaders

Towards the end of the episode, Nadia asks both guests what they would like listeners to do differently to create more inclusive workplaces.

Their answers reinforce that meaningful inclusion is rarely achieved through large initiatives alone. Instead, it often comes from everyday actions taken by individuals throughout an organisation.

Rosie encourages businesses to stop treating flexibility as a favour. Flexible working should not be viewed as a special privilege granted to certain employees. Instead, organisations should judge success by outcomes rather than where or how work is completed. When expectations are clear and performance is measured fairly, flexibility becomes an enabler of inclusion rather than a concession.

She also returns once again to the principle that "fair doesn't always mean equal." Designing genuinely inclusive systems requires recognising that different people face different challenges throughout their careers. Identical treatment may appear fair on the surface, but equitable outcomes often require different forms of support.

Most importantly, Rosie emphasises that inclusion is not solely the responsibility of HR departments or senior leadership teams. Every individual contributes to workplace culture through the way they collaborate, communicate and support colleagues.

Rajni builds on this by highlighting the profound impact mentors, sponsors and supportive colleagues have had throughout her own career. She recalls the leaders who intentionally recommended her for projects, mentors who encouraged her to step beyond her comfort zone and colleagues who generously shared their knowledge.

These seemingly small actions accelerated her development in ways that formal training alone never could.

Her message is simple but powerful. Leaders should actively open doors for others. They should recommend talented individuals for opportunities, encourage them to pursue ambitious goals and help build confidence long before people fully recognise their own potential.

These behaviours not only transform individual careers but also strengthen organisations by developing more diverse future leaders.

For businesses working across financial services, these insights reinforce an important reality. Attracting exceptional talent is only one part of building successful organisations. Creating environments where people are supported, developed and encouraged to reach their potential ultimately determines whether that talent remains and flourishes.

Why Inclusion Should Be a Business Strategy, Not a Compliance Exercise

Throughout this episode of FinTech's DEI Discussions, Rosie Crowley and Rajni Rughwani demonstrate that conversations about inclusion are ultimately conversations about long-term business success.

The gender pension gap illustrates how relatively small inequalities throughout a career can compound over decades into substantial financial disparities. Yet the discussion also shows that employers have meaningful opportunities to intervene.

Whether through fairer pension contribution policies, mentoring programmes, accessible financial education, inclusive AI governance or flexible working arrangements, organisations can influence outcomes far earlier than many people realise.

For employers across financial technology, these conversations have become increasingly important as competition for skilled professionals continues to grow. Candidates are no longer evaluating businesses solely on salary or benefits. They are looking closely at leadership, career development, inclusion, wellbeing and whether organisations genuinely invest in their people.

For businesses seeking to attract and retain the very best professionals, inclusion is no longer simply part of an employer value proposition. It has become a competitive advantage.

As a specialist FinTech recruitment business, Harrington Starr works with organisations across global financial technology to build high-performing, diverse teams capable of driving innovation and long-term success. The themes explored throughout this episode reinforce that inclusive hiring is only the beginning. Creating cultures where people can grow, contribute and build sustainable careers is what ultimately shapes stronger businesses and a stronger financial services industry.

Nadia closes the discussion by reminding listeners that everyone has a responsibility to create more inclusive workplaces, regardless of their role or seniority. Whether someone is completing work experience, beginning their first role or leading an international organisation, every interaction presents an opportunity to open doors for others.

That message perfectly captures the purpose of FinTech's DEI Discussions. By listening, learning and sharing practical experiences, the financial technology industry can continue moving beyond awareness towards meaningful action. As Rosie and Rajni demonstrate so powerfully throughout this conversation, real change often begins with one opportunity, one mentor, one conversation and one organisation choosing to make fairness part of everyday decision-making.

For anyone working in financial services, pensions, technology or recruitment, this episode provides an important reminder that building a more inclusive industry is not simply the right thing to do. It is fundamental to creating stronger businesses, better leaders and more sustainable careers for the future of FinTech.