Forty-five leaders from across Regions Bank stepped out of the office and into the community—fanning out across Birmingham, Alabama, to experience the challenge of managing money with limited resources.
The morning’s rain, cold temperatures and slate-gray skies proved a fitting backdrop for a morning of frustrations associated with trying to complete the tasks assigned by the Financial Health Network for its immersive FinX experience using non-bank products or bank services without a primary account at that bank.
These included cashing a check drawn on a different bank, buying and reloading a prepaid card, buying a cashier’s check, and shopping for diapers and other gifts for a baby shower — all with $50.
As with the others, my group’s checklist included shopping for infant childcare and visiting nontraditional lenders in search of quick cash. In the end, fees ate up $20 of our $50 and some of the interest rates quoted were in the triple digits!
Ali Maher, head of Consumer Deposit Products and Payments for the Consumer Banking Group, couldn’t find a store that sold the assigned $10 prepaid card so had to buy a $20 card instead. After setting it up on her smartphone, she learned later she’d be charged a fee if she did not use it again.
Barriers and benefits
With real financial expertise and personalized support, we offer many of these services in one place, often with lower fees. That can make a meaningful difference in helping people move toward financial stability. Ali Maher, head of Consumer Deposit Products and Payments for the Consumer Banking Group
“The process was fragmented and expensive, and nearly a quarter of my paycheck was gone before I could even buy items for the baby shower,” Maher said. “At several locations, I couldn’t get help choosing the best payment option or understanding the fees, and when I ran into technical issues, there was no support, making an already challenging process even harder.
According to its 2025 Financial Health Pulse® Survey, the Financial Health Network reported only 31% of households surveyed in the U.S. considered themselves financially healthy.
“It gave me a deeper understanding of the barriers many face in accessing basic financial services and also underscored the value a bank like Regions can provide,” she said. “With real financial expertise and personalized support, we offer many of these services in one place, often with lower fees. That can make a meaningful difference in helping people move toward financial stability.”
The Financial Health Network offers FinX dozens of times each year to build empathy and challenge participants to find new ways to improve the financial health of their communities. The experience is part of the national nonprofit and membership organization’s mission to support financial health for all.
According to its 2025 Financial Health Pulse® Survey, the Financial Health Network reported only 31% of households surveyed in the U.S. considered themselves financially healthy — defined as “spending, saving, borrowing and planning in a way that allows them to be resilient and pursue opportunities over time.”
Simpler, faster solutions
Consumer Chief Information Officer Scott Watkins found it ironic given his IT role that his team could never successfully activate their prepaid card from a non-bank provider. He came away from FinX convinced even more of the need for tech solutions that are simple, reliable, fast and consistent and that know customers across channels to minimize data re-entry.
“Given the time pressures people face and the short time they have to run errands, we have to be able to provide services and guidance quickly,” Watkins said. “This could look like smarter assisted channels so our branch and contact center associates could provide recommendations nearly instantly across platforms based on customer inputs.
“I think it could also mean providing mobile banking apps that use very little data so they load even faster on devices and offer more multilingual support and enable remote account opening and digital verification. Finally, there’s a clear need for low-cost and seamless ways for customers to send and receive money globally and make instant transfers.”
Meeting people where they are
Chief People Officer Angela Santone was among the business partners that Kate Danella, head of Consumer Banking Group, invited to participate in the exercise organized for Consumer by its Consumer Strategy, Insights & Execution team.
“The FinEx experience was truly humbling for me,” Santone said. “Experiencing the reality of paying fees just to cash a check and struggling to afford diapers made me pause and reflect on how many barriers exist for those simply trying to make ends meet.”
“It’s easy to underestimate the emotional and financial weight of these challenges,” Santone added. “This reminded me that as leaders, we have a responsibility to design solutions that not only provide access but also restore dignity and reduce unnecessary burdens. It’s about meeting people where they are and truly understanding their needs.”
Experiencing the reality of paying fees just to cash a check and struggling to afford diapers made me pause and reflect on how many barriers exist for those simply trying to make ends meet.
Angela Santone, Chief People Officer