Truist Invites Clients to Play Financial Wellness ‘Long Game’

Truist’s Foundry startup has an app that rewards users for building healthy financial habits.

Dubbed “Long Game,” the mobile app gives Truist clients the chance to earn monetary rewards for their financial wellness efforts, the bank said in a news release Thursday (May 18).

“Truist Long Game is rooted in behavioral economics and gamification,” the company said. “Users set goals, save money, and answer trivia to earn coins as rewards for making progress toward their savings goals. These coins can be used to play a variety of fun games for chances to win up to $1 million.”

The bank acquired FinTech startup Long Game and its gamified mobile finance app last May, with founder Lindsay Holden and her workers becoming Truist Foundry, a “startup within a bank,” as PYMNTS reported last year.

“By combining the responsibility of saving with an engaging mobile gaming app, we incentivize users to take control of their financial future in a fun way,” Holden said in the news release.

“The mobile app is an incredible example of how the unique startup approach to our Truist Foundry group effectively combines innovative technology and human touch to enrich clients’ financial experience.”

The release notes the high number of consumers who aren’t prepared for financial emergencies, which dovetails with research showing 60% of American adults living paycheck to paycheck as of March.

“There’s some indication that credit could be a lifeline for consumers dealing with financial emergencies,” that report said. “PYMNTS research has shown that 62% of consumers experienced a financially distressing event over the last three years.”

Financial wellness tools like the one Truist is offering have begun to warrant a second look as consumers dip into their savings, as noted here recently.

As emergency expenses and other unexpected bills eat away at consumers’ savings, 27% of surveyed consumers overall have dipped into savings or investments to pay down their credit cards. It’s not a sustainable situation, showcasing a clear need for struggling consumers to get all the help they can.

“This is where budget-focused FinTechs and innovative FIs may step in,” the report said. “Card-issuing banks have a multipronged opportunity to assist customers on a path to financial wellness and possibly cut down on delinquencies by offering innovative tools such as payment method recommendations.”

Broadly based on customer transaction data, payment recommendation tools feed that information through algorithms to develop personalized advice, such as identifying the best card to use, a merchant-specific deal or interest-free buy now, pay later (BNPL) plans.