Oval Money is a startup founded in 2016 by a heterogeneous group of entrepreneurs and technicians to introduce inclusion, transparency and education in the world of personal finance. Their mission is to revolutionize the world of savings, shortening the distance between people and finance.

The platform allows anyone to set aside their savings and make them grow by investing, ensuring the same safety standards as a banking institution. The financial component is therefore joined by a machine learning component: by interpreting the consumption and saving habits of consumers, the platform is able to provide tools and advice that help people to increase the awareness with which they approach their finances, but also knowledge of the financial market mechanism.

Initial situation

The project carried out in collaboration with JEME stems from the desire to celebrate World Savings Day. Established in Milan in 1924 on the occasion of the first international savings congress, since then with an increasingly less symbolic-folkloristic character, it is repeated annually every 31 October. The collaboration was focused on the formulation of a shared questionnaire and JEME took care of the data collection and processing methodology, while Oval Money guaranteed the technological support.

JEME’s contribution

• The project was divided into five phases: definition of the research questions, qualitative analysis, interpretation of information and identification of insights, creation and subsequent administration of the questionnaire and, finally, analysis of the data obtained.
• The qualitative analysis, carried out through the use of two focus groups, made it possible to investigate in depth issues such as the thought drivers that guide people on a daily basis with regard to spending and savings. Sampling was initially carried out on the basis of profession and secondarily on age and sex, in order to ensure greater heterogeneity of the reference sample.
• On the basis of the insights that emerged, a questionnaire was drawn up aimed at verifying the hypotheses and research questions initially posed and understanding the social changes in this area. This was administered throughout Italy, for two months, using the CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interviewing) methodology.
• The questionnaire, consisting of 10 questions, investigated thematic areas such as education, vision and relationship with money, savings, finance and investments.
• The data analyzed made it possible to make considerations regarding saving in Italy, the relationship of Italians with money, the propensity to save of Italians, the family context and its influence on saving, the link between saving and investment.
• The output took a team of two associates over a period of 16 weeks.

JEME’s impact

The project has guaranteed JEME considerable added value both in terms of experience and notoriety.

The collaboration with a player in the world of fintech such as Oval Money has allowed to deepen the knowledge of the associates in the sector and has helped to give relevance to the reality that JEME represents.

The publication of the project was followed by some physical and digital newspapers, as evidenced by an article in ‘Il Sole 24 Ore’ which presents the two protagonists of the research and analyzes some data published in the final report.

Finally, as proof of the healthy relationship established during the collaboration, Claudio Bedino, Co-founder of Oval Money, attended the ‘Oper Banking’ event, organized by JEME in collaboration with the FinTech Evangelism association.