CI&T has unveiled a new prototype banking app aimed at helping adults with learning disabilities gain greater financial independence. Announced today, Nemo is the product of a six-week collaboration between CI&T and Project Nemo, a not-for-profit initiative dedicated to advancing disability inclusion in financial services, with backing from major UK organisations including Nationwide Building Society, Mencap, and financial advocacy service […]
CI&T has unveiled a new prototype banking app aimed at helping adults with learning disabilities gain greater financial independence.
Announced today, Nemo is the product of a six-week collaboration between CI&T and Project Nemo, a not-for-profit initiative dedicated to advancing disability inclusion in financial services, with backing from major UK organisations including Nationwide Building Society, Mencap, and financial advocacy service Dosh.
The launch follows the findings of a report commissioned by Project Nemo and supported by Nationwide and accessibility experts.
The Safe Spending for Adults with a Learning Disability report revealed that 32% of adults with learning disabilities do not have a bank account in their own name, while 38% require ongoing assistance with everyday spending. Moreover, 87% rely on informal workarounds—such as sharing PINs or making proxy phone calls—because of inaccessible banking systems, leaving them vulnerable to financial harm.
AI and tech acceleration firm CI&T said that Nemo has been designed with input from people with lived experience of learning disabilities, carers, and accessibility specialists.
The app’s features include supported decision-making, Calm Mode to minimise sensory overload, and an emergency pot with spending locks.
BAFTA-winning presenter and disability influencer George Webster (pictured below) provides in-app video guides to make complex information, like terms and conditions, easier to understand.
Beyond the prototype, Nemo forms part of a larger 12-month Project Nemo campaign launched at the 2024 Innovate Finance Global Summit, with structured workstreams focused on research, awareness, product development, and industry guidance.
The initiative is supported by key figures such as Kathryn Townsend, Nationwide’s head of customer vulnerability & accessibility and the UK Government’s disability and access ambassador for banking. The aim is to promote systemic change across banks, fintechs, regulators, and trade bodies.
Importantly, Nemo addresses a population of 1.5 million UK adults with learning disabilities and speaks to the wider economic potential of inclusive design: the so-called “purple pound”, representing the estimated £274 billion annual spending power of disabled consumers.
“The path to true innovation is paved with diversity, accessibility, and inclusion,” said Solange Sobral, EVP & partner at CI&T.
Joanne Dewar, founder of Project Nemo, described the app as “a profound way of giving voice to [the community’s] needs.”
Nemo joins a growing field of inclusive fintech solutions. UK start-up Touco, which helps vulnerable individuals manage their finances with family support, and Bank Australia’s Easy English banking guides, show how the sector is increasingly focused on accessibility.
Whether Nemo will move from prototype to commercial product remains to be seen, but the project signals that inclusive design is becoming a significant trend in financial service innovation.
