{"id":4733,"date":"2025-07-02T09:00:45","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T09:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/?p=4733"},"modified":"2026-01-28T21:42:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T21:42:24","slug":"the-financial-industrys-language-barrier-issue-a-call-to-action-for-more-multilingual-banking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/the-financial-industrys-language-barrier-issue-a-call-to-action-for-more-multilingual-banking\/","title":{"rendered":"The Financial Industry\u2019s Language Barrier Issue \u2013 A Call to Action for More Multilingual Banking"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Let\u2019s be honest\u2014money talks, but what happens when your customers don\u2019t fully understand the language <em>your<\/em> money is speaking? In a country where over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.census.gov\/library\/stories\/2022\/12\/languages-we-speak-in-united-states.html\">68 million people speak a language other than English at home<\/a>, the financial industry has a language issue it needs to address. And it\u2019s a big one.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Risks of Language Gaps in the Financial Industry<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve spent nearly three decades working in multicultural communications, and I\u2019ve seen up-close-and-personal how language gaps erode trust and accessibility. Nowhere is this more evident than in the banking sector. It\u2019s one thing to translate an ad or post bilingual signage. It\u2019s another <a href=\"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/lti-for-organizations\/corporate\">to build a multilingual infrastructure<\/a> that actually serves people where they are, with dignity, clarity, and cultural competence. Allow me to expand.<\/p>\n<p>When banking services aren\u2019t accessible in a client\u2019s preferred language, the risks go beyond missed opportunities. We\u2019re talking about financial exclusion, misinformed decisions, and costly mistakes. People may sign contracts they don\u2019t fully understand. They might avoid financial services altogether out of fear or confusion. And banks lose out on entire communities of loyal, long-term customers.<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t just a social issue\u2014it\u2019s a business issue. <a href=\"https:\/\/jsri.msu.edu\/publications\/nexo\/vol-xxv\/no-2-spring-2022\/latinos-and-the-united-states-banking-system\">According to the FDIC, Hispanic (multilingual) households are among the disproportionately unbanked and underbanked populations<\/a>. If the industry is serious about closing this gap, language access can\u2019t be an afterthought. It must be a core business strategy.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, adding a \u201cSelect Language\u201d toggle on your website isn\u2019t enough. True multilingual banking means:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hiring <a href=\"https:\/\/www.actfl.org\/assessments\">ACTFL\u00ae certified<\/a> bilingual frontline staff who can guide clients through complex processes to ensure that language accessibility is embedded in every touchpoint\u2014online, on the phone, and in person.<\/li>\n<li>Offering financial literacy programs in multiple languages.<\/li>\n<li>Providing translated legal documents, not just marketing materials.<\/li>\n<li>Training employees in cultural fluency, not just language basics.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Build Trust with Your Clientele by Speaking Their Language<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Trust is currency in banking. And trust is built through understanding. When a customer walks into a branch and is greeted in their native language, there\u2019s an immediate emotional shift. Walls come down. Questions surface. Conversations begin. That connection can be the difference between a missed opportunity and a lifelong client.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s time for banking leaders to move from good intentions to intentional action. It\u2019s a win-win for all parties involved. This is especially critical for first-generation Latinos, many of whom come from a culture where <a href=\"https:\/\/thedialogue.org\/analysis\/why-does-cash-remain-king-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean\">banks aren\u2019t traditionally seen as trustworthy<\/a>. For these customers, a language barrier doesn\u2019t just block a transaction\u2014it reinforces an unsavory feeling that they don\u2019t belong in the financial system. When banks cater to multilingual customers through language proficiency, they tap into market segments that are often ignored and up for grabs.<\/p>\n<h2>\u00a0<strong>Recommendations for Making Your Services Accessible<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Here\u2019s where to start:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Audit your business\u2019s language accessibility, e<\/strong>valuating how well your institution is currently serving non-English speakers at every touchpoint.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Invest in <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/commercial-testing-instruments\">ACTFL Proficiency Assessments<\/a> to ensure your team has the language and cultural skills needed to serve Limited English Proficiency (LEP) communities.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Collaborate with community organizations<\/strong>who are trusted messengers in the co-creation of financial education resources in relevant languages.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Celebrate multilingual employees<\/strong>recognizing that they\u2019re your competitive advantage.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Multilingual banking is about reimagining the role of financial institutions in a multilingual society. It\u2019s about saying to your customers, \u201cWe see you. We hear you. We speak your language.\u201d\u00a0 The question isn\u2019t whether we can afford to prioritize language access. The question is\u2014can we afford not to?<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Sources<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Dietrich, Sandy and Hernandez, Erik. \u201cNearly 68 Million People Spoke a Language Other Than English at Home in 2019\u201d, U.S. Census. December 06, 2022. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.census.gov\/library\/stories\/2022\/12\/languages-we-speak-in-united-states.html\">https:\/\/www.census.gov\/library\/stories\/2022\/12\/languages-we-speak-in-united-states.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Siles, Marcelo. \u201cLatinos and the United States Banking System\u201d, Michigan State University Julian Samora Research Institute. Accessed on May 15, 2025. <a href=\"https:\/\/jsri.msu.edu\/publications\/nexo\/vol-xxv\/no-2-spring-2022\/latinos-and-the-united-states-banking-system\">https:\/\/jsri.msu.edu\/publications\/nexo\/vol-xxv\/no-2-spring-2022\/latinos-and-the-united-states-banking-system<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy Does Cash Remain King in Latin America and the Caribbean?\u201d, The Dialogue \u2013 Leadership for the Americas. Accessed on May 15, 2025. <a href=\"https:\/\/thedialogue.org\/analysis\/why-does-cash-remain-king-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean\">https:\/\/thedialogue.org\/analysis\/why-does-cash-remain-king-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Let\u2019s be honest\u2014money talks, but what happens when your customers don\u2019t fully understand the language your money is speaking? In a country where over 68 million people speak a language other than English at home, the financial industry has a language issue it needs to address. And it\u2019s a big one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":4734,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[16,48,30,33,154,42,32,408,512,158,44,27,268,156,8,7,145,31,155],"class_list":["post-4733","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commercial","tag-actfl","tag-bilingual","tag-bilingual-employee","tag-bilingual-employees","tag-bilingualism","tag-determining-proficiency","tag-employee-language-assessment","tag-finances","tag-financial-industry","tag-language-certification","tag-language-in-the-workplace","tag-language-proficiency","tag-language-proficiency-assessments","tag-language-skills","tag-language-test","tag-language-testing","tag-multilingual","tag-multilingual-employees","tag-multilingualism"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/MARCH-2025-BLOG-3-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4733","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4733"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4733\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5335,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4733\/revisions\/5335"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4734"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4733"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4733"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetesting.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4733"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}