When I read the press release on J.D. Power’s latest Financial Health and Advice Satisfaction Study, one line stood out to me more than any other:

I couldn’t agree more.

At SpringFour, we’ve been building solutions around this exact idea for nearly two decades. And we’ve always known the real work is about impact.

Real financial health requires more than advice. It requires access. When someone’s struggling to pay bills, afford child care, or keep up with medical expenses, suggesting they stick to a budget or start saving for a long-term goal doesn’t help unless we’re also pointing them toward ways to actually do that. That’s where SpringFour comes in.

We connect people to trusted, nonprofit and government resources that help lower household expenses in areas like food, utilities, employment, and healthcare. It’s not theoretical — it’s immediate, actionable support, embedded into the banks and lenders they already trust. In 2024 alone, we delivered more than 8.5 million financial health referrals.

So when J.D. Power reports that 43% of U.S. retail bank customers are now considered financially vulnerable, it confirms what we already know: people are looking for more than tips; they’re looking for tools.

They want tangible, actionable support. And they’re not just open to receiving it from their banks — they expect it. And that is great news for us in this industry — because this is relatively easy to solve.

The study found that 26% of all bank customers — and 36% of those under 40 — are actively seeking financial guidance. Yet ,one in five customers who researched budget management tools never ended up using them.

Why not? Perhaps the tools weren’t useful or relevant. 

Awareness does not equal access and delivering educational resources is not sufficient. If banks truly want to help their customers improve their financial health, then they need to move beyond sharing advice like “budget and save.” They need to provide people with vetted, accessible ways to save by helping to reduce household expenses or access programs that can assist. Available technology solutions exist to do so and are built to easily scale. 

At SpringFour, our mission has always been clear: boost your business by connecting people to the trusted financial health resources they need, when they need them most. In Q1 2025, the need has only grown more urgent — and so has our impact.

This quarter, we delivered over 1.8 million referrals to individuals and families nationwide, helping them save on essentials like food, utilities, and housing — and empowering them to stay resilient in the face of growing financial pressures.

At a time when Americans are carrying a record $1.21 trillion in credit card debt and delinquencies are on the rise, SpringFour continues to prove that access to the right resources drives real results: stronger repayment rates, healthier financial outcomes, and deeper customer trust.

This quarter also brought important milestones, from our expanded resource offerings and new integration with C&R Software’s Debt Manager, to partnerships that are helping organizations like MSUFCU, Enact, and Propel Holdings meet customers where they are.

Thank you, as always, for your partnership,