Financial abuse — the 'silent' gender-based violence that needs greater attention

Banks in the Asia-Pacific region can do more to protect their customers.

- Nathalie Kouassi Akon and Stephanie Copus Campbell

Escaping a violent relationship, a woman asks her bank to keep her new address private, but her location is revealed on joint account statements. Mai* discovers her husband has emptied their joint account without her knowledge or consent. A son takes out a joint loan with his mother but withdraws the amount in full, leaving her with debt. A father refuses to let his daughter open a bank account when she begins working, demanding that the salary be sent to his account, instead.

These real and shocking examples of financial abuse come from Asia and the Pacific. Financial abuse is a silent and profoundly damaging form of domestic, family and gender-based violence (GBV) involving the misuse of financial products and services as tools of control and devastation, leaving victim survivors with limited or no control over their financial decision-making and trapped in an abusive relationship.

Financial abuse can happen to anyone. However, women are more likely to experience it due to societal inequalities and gender norms. Financial abuse directly and negatively impacts a woman's ability to make choices about her own and her family's life. For those also experiencing other forms of GBV, it means the ability to escape a violent situation and support herself is limited.

The scale, experience and impact of financial abuse in Asia and the Pacific are among the least understood and addressed issues facing women in the region, yet they demand urgent attention.