Interledger Foundation funds Oxford-led study of financial inclusion barriers in Colombia

The one-year project will examine how trust, transparency and product design influence the use of digital financial services among underserved households in Medellín

The Oxford-led project will examine how trust, transparency and financial product design affect participation in digital financial systems in Medellín, Colombia.

The Interledger Foundation is funding a one-year research project led by the University of Oxford’s Centre on Migration, Policy and Society to investigate why access to digital financial services does not always translate into meaningful participation for people in Medellín, Colombia.

The Architectures of Trust in Financial Inclusion Systems project will examine how residents assess financial products and the institutions providing them. Its focus is on vulnerable households that are often underserved by formal financial systems.

Researchers from the University of Oxford, York University in Toronto and the Interledger Foundation are involved in the work. Carlos Vargas-Silva, Professor of Migration Studies at the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, known as COMPAS, is the project’s Principal Investigator.

The research is taking place as digital wallets and instant payments increasingly replace cash and traditional wire transfers in Colombia. The Interledger Foundation says this shift has given millions of Colombians access to financial services, but low-income households continue to face obstacles to participating fully in the digital financial economy.

Those obstacles will be examined through the way people judge cost, risk, transparency and trust. The project will also consider which financial products participants prefer and how wider social and economic conditions affect their decisions.

Access does not guarantee participation

Medellín was selected because it combines a developed financial sector with persistent inequalities in income, access to information and economic opportunity. The research will investigate both the financial products available in the city and the relationships between potential users and formal institutions.

“Many people do not access financial products and services because they perceive them as confusing, expensive, or untrustworthy,” Vargas-Silva says.

Others may use financial services without fully understanding their terms, conditions or risks, according to the project information. This shifts the focus beyond whether a bank account, digital wallet or payment service is technically available and toward whether people understand and trust what they are being offered.

Briana Marbury, President and CEO of the Interledger Foundation, argues that users’ experiences determine whether access creates wider economic opportunities.

“The way people experience financial products and services shapes their willingness to engage with them and determines whether access translates into genuine economic opportunity and agency,” Marbury says.

The work is a research project rather than a trial or rollout of Interledger payment technology. The supplied project information does not state the number of participants or provide a detailed research methodology. The value of the Foundation’s funding has also not been disclosed.

Findings due in early 2027

COMPAS is an interdisciplinary University of Oxford research center based within the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography. Its work covers migration, public policy and the social and economic effects of mobility.

The Interledger Foundation is a nonprofit that supports open financial systems. It stewards independently governed payment standards, including the Interledger Protocol and Open Payments, and funds developers, researchers, educators and advocates working on access to digital financial services. Since 2020, the Foundation says it has committed more than $21 million through over 300 projects across more than 45 countries.

Milestones scheduled for 2026 include a conference in Colombia and a workshop in Oxford. The findings from The Architectures of Trust in Financial Inclusion Systems are due to be published in early 2027.