As attention has become a currency, the financial services industry is changing—using gamification to engage a more digital-first audience. And beyond the buzzword we are referring to, gamifying finance involves far more than points and badges—what we’re looking at is looking at business models of financial literacy, customer retention, and transactional behaviours through the lens of behavioural design. While fintech companies have pioneered this space, traditional banks are also now realizing that engagement can and must feel less like homework and more like a game.
Overcoming the Engagement Challenge in Finance
Despite understanding the indispensable nature of financial wellness, most users do not use banking apps frequently. A 2023 survey in India conducted by Razorpay and FIS (Fidelity National Information Services) found that while over 70% of users have digital banking apps, only 24% actively use financial planning features. Financial literacy is another area of concern; according to the S&P Global FinLit Survey on financial literacy, only 27% of Indian adults are financially literate, and large gaps exist in emerging markets too – for Indonesia this means 32% and for Brazil this means 35%.
The disengagement does not come from need, but rather experience and emotional context. Banking interfaces are transactional – compartmentalised, sterile and intentionally non-stimulating with no opportunity for sustainable dopamine triggers. This is where gamification comes in, not as a gimmick, but a psychological unlock.
Rewiring Behaviors through Gamification
Gamification leverages the motivators that are internal to individuals, which include curiosity, achievement, progression and competition. Several companies are changing behavior through gamification in financial services without trading off any of the substance of their service. For instance:
Progression: Acorn and Digit use visual representation of progress so users can understand how much closer they are to their savings goals.
Micro-rewards: In India, the app Fi provides scratch cards, with small cash backs for every transaction and turns what could have been a regular transaction into a reward based process.
Simulations & Quests: Monobank in Ukraine gave users a virtual cat to “feed” through saving and a fun metaphor led users to actually save money.
Leaderboards: Zogo and Step have users answer trivia and take money quiz tests to display their knowledge, rewarding top performers with actual perks.
Such mechanisms serve as an entry point of low thresholds for users who would have lacked engagement, but who may engage over the long term.
Business Impact- Not Just a Vanity Metric
While engagement is a great pageview and talking point, it’s only worth anything if it drives business outcomes. And gamification is driving business outcomes and here’s how.
Increased usage of the app: Nubank reported a 30% increase in daily active users after implementing reward-based task experience.
Reduced churn: Gamified savings challenges in Revolut (a British multinational neobank and fintech company) resulted in a 19% improvement in 90-day retention.
Improved conversion rates: Robinhood, an American financial services company, has publicly reported that their referral bonuses and milestone-based gamification has led to a 28% increase in first-time deposits.
Gamification is not about making finance a game; it’s about putting psychological design behind the journey to generate outcomes.
Ethics in Financial Gamification
While there is certainly a downside, manipulation and motivation are a fine line. If you constantly use variable rewards or social comparison, you could engage in impulsive behaviors—especially on the trading or credit-linked side. Responsible gamification means:
1. Clear rules
2. No addition loops
3. Rewards based on long-term behavior
4. Frictions in the flow that help people pause before making any high-stakes decision
Real gamification in finance is not about hijacking our attention but restoring it in meaningful ways.
The Road Ahead
As financial services become more and more a part of lifestyle platforms, from ride-hailing apps to health apps, the next frontier is what we call “invisible finance with visible rewards.” For example, what if fitness goals could earn a savings boost for a gym-goer or changes in a user’s behavioural choices in challenging, interactive budgeting games could reduce dynamic insurance premiums?
Gamification will not replace thoughtful, legitimate financial products but will be the UI layer for all services to pass on real value.
In a world where the average attention span is now below 8 seconds, it will be the financial institutions that play smartly, engaging users to make finance fun, relevant and behaviourally designed that will be the winners of this game.
(The author, Abbhinav R Jain, is the Co-founder & Chief Financial Officer, of AdCounty Media.)
