A bank’s mission to clean up fintech

Aussie startup WLTH is tackling the plastic pollution crisis head on and is encouraging other fintech companies to do the same.

An Australian fintech company is challenging others in the sector to think more sustainably after embedding ethical environmental practices into its own business model.

Brodie Haupt, CEO and co-founder of Brisbane-based fintech startup, digital lending and payments provider WLTHsays it’s time for fintech companies to step up and do their bit for the environment.

He is a passionate fighter for the cause and strongly against greenwashing in the industry.

To avoid this in his own business, Haupt said he ingrained purpose-led initiatives into WLTH’s DNA from the beginning, creating a strong sustainability message.

“If you want a purpose, it’s so much easier to build your business model before you start a business so that it can become a core focus of your organization,” he said.

This effort is symbolized in WLTH’s global partnership with Parley for the Oceansa not for profit that collaborates with other organizations on tailored projects that have a positive impact on the oceans.

Through this collaboration, WLTH has created a bank card made from recycled marine plastic. Similar cards have been made by other companies, but Haupt said what makes WLTH different is that employees at WLTH were involved in its creation.

“What we wanted to do was instead of just partnering with them… [we wanted] to be involved in the whole journey, so the whole supply chain of it. To go out there, to be involved in [beach] cleaning up, removing or intercepting marine plastic and marine debris from Australian coastlines and beaches,” he explained.

The WLTH team have done four different beach cleans now, with recovered plastic sent back to Parley to be sorted. It is then transported to the card manufacturer to be converted into a bank card.

The cards are linked to WLTH’s mortgage offset accounts, and for every mortgage settled, Parley is funded to clean up 50 square meters of Australian coastline.

“It’s about being that change and being a voice for people and for the plastic pollution crisis that we’re facing,” Haupt said.

“As a country where, as we say in our anthem, we are surrounded by the sea, we are a coastal society. The sea and beaches are part of our upbringing and part of how we communicate and how we act, and we are so closely linked to the sea, so it was a purpose very close to our hearts.”

Building purpose from the ground up

Sustainability was built into the company before it was created, explained Haupt.

He and his brother, also a co-founder, approached Parley before starting the company and asked them if they would be interested in joining forces on “a new way of doing … finance in Australia”.

The purpose, Haupt said, was to “try and really focus on the value of having a strong, purpose-led element or initiative in the business that hasn’t necessarily been seen before”.

In the long term, WLTH hopes that through its partnership with Parley it will encourage other businesses to make positive changes.

WLTH advocates for awareness of the plastic pollution crisis and Parley’s work through its network of financial brokers and other financial businesses.

Customers are also taken along on the impact journey; both WLTH’s broker portal and customer portal have a shoreline cleanup widget that tracks the impact they’ve been involved in through the products they use.

“If you’re a consumer and you have a mortgage with us … it will show you how many square meters of shoreline clearance you’ve affected yourself. And with a broker as an example, [it is] based on how many loans they have settled [to] show them how much of an impact they’ve made doing business with us,” Haupt said.

This gamification is designed to reinforce the plastic warrior message.

In the meantime, involving employees directly in the beach cleanup effort will also give them a sense of purpose, Haupt added.

WLTH has also turned its attention to other areas of its business to reduce plastic waste, including in mailings.

It uses 100 percent recyclable envelopes and cardboard, and the adhesives used in these products have no plastic polymers.

“That’s the kind of level of detail we get to because we feel like we put so much effort into making this card and being involved in the end-to-end supply chain that we couldn’t let ourselves down when it comes to the packaging,” Haupt said .

WLTH also advocates that comparison sites should have sustainability sections to profile sustainable and green loans for customers.

Space for everyone

Haupt encourages other fintech companies to consider what they can do to have a more positive impact on the environment.

“We actually see it as an advantage for others to pick up our ideas. We are happy to be first, but we don’t want to be the only ones, he said.

“We believe that consumers will become more and more sensitive to targeted initiatives and impact and sustainability. And it has clearly been a growing trend. We’re betting that consumers are smart enough to know who’s who at the zoo and which organization actually does what they say they do.”

Haupt sees WLTH’s role as bringing light to greenwashing practices within the fintech industry.

“We are going to extraordinary lengths to ensure that our products, processes and services are more sustainable and involved in the end-to-end life cycle of how we collect the plastic and reproduce it and turn it into something useful,” he said.

Some businesses, including major banks, are pushing greenwashing initiatives that can have “a chilling effect” on sustainability investments, as businesses are unable to realize the benefits of making environmental impacts or improvements, he said.

“This innovation and investment should be protected against the unscrupulous behavior of other businesses making green claims without incurring the same kind of costs, because that is a real significant cost increase that we incur as a business – but we have built it into our business model from the ground up off, so we have the opportunity to be able to fund it that way.”

See more: ACCC launches investigation into greenwashing

Certification can help in this area, but otherwise Haupt said clients should look to see if a fintech can articulate its impact. If it can’t, something fishy might be going on.

“I think it’s really the consumers’ responsibility to respond to what’s being put out there and really hold these organizations’ feet to the fire and get them to come forward and validate what they’ve done,” Haupt said.

“It is a systemic problem that will take a long time to solve. But all we try to do is do our part. And I think the financial sector has a big responsibility, a big responsibility to help drive these initiatives to create awareness.”