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Financial Independence

Helping people who have lost control of their finances regain their financial independence

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A way back to independence

We’re working alongside UK charities like Shelter to help people without a fixed address or experiencing financial abuse regain financial independence by opening a bank account. This gives them a safe place to keep and spend money they get from work or benefits, as well as a way to spend or save towards their future.

Breaking the vicious circle

Homelessness is a vicious circle. Not having a home makes it harder to open a bank account. This makes it harder to secure a job or claim benefits. Which makes it harder to find a home.

At HSBC UK, we’re working alongside housing and homelessness charities like Shelter, to help people without a fixed home address to open a bank account.

Helping people regain control of their money

Financial abuse is when someone takes control over another adult’s finances. They could be doing this to take away their victim’s independence, or in some cases make them reliant on their abuser. In fact, economic abuse occurs in 95% of domestic abuse situations.*

People experiencing financial abuse may have personal items such as their bank card or account statements taken from them. HSBC UK customers who are concerned an abuser could use these details to find out their location can request a sort code that cannot be traced to a particular bank branch, helping them to access their finances anonymously.

All our branches are Safe Spaces. If you need somewhere private to call a domestic abuse helpline or support service, you can walk into any of our branches and tell our staff that you would like to access a Safe Space. Safe Spaces are available in all HSBC UK branches and over 6,500 locations across the UK, so you’ll never be far from a Safe Space. Find your nearest Safe Space.

If people are looking to escape an abusive situation but are worried they won’t be able to open a bank account without a fixed address, we’re working with UK charities to help people open their own bank account via our No Fixed Address service, supporting them to leave an abusive relationship for good.

If you think you might be experiencing domestic abuse or know someone who might be, we’re here to help.

*Source: Surviving Economic Abuse found that “95% of domestic abuse victims experience at least one form of economic abuse.”

If you would like to find out more about the research from Surviving Economic Abuse, including their Economic Justice Project, visit: Research and evidence - Surviving Economic Abuse

You can also find further information about economic abuse and links to support on their website: Surviving Economic Abuse: Transforming responses to economic abuse

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