UK survey highlights digital financial abuse among young women and girls
Original report:
Almost one in five UK women and girls aged 16–24 had experienced partners using digital finance to abuse them, according to research reported in November 2026. Respondents described restricted account access, coerced borrowing and harm to their finances and mental health.
A nationally representative survey by Surviving Economic Abuse and Ipsos UK found that almost one in five women and girls aged 16–24 had experienced digital financial abuse by a current or former partner. The Guardian reported the findings on 15 November 2026. The charity estimated that nearly 700,000 people in that age group were affected across the UK.
One in eight respondents reported being denied online banking login details, and the same proportion described partners controlling digital wallets. Seven per cent reported credit being obtained in their name without consent or because they feared refusing. Among those reporting abuse, more than 40% described financial difficulty and half reported negative mental health effects.
The research linked economic abuse to barriers to leaving relationships: more than a third of those affected said it had prevented them from leaving an abuser. Survivors and experts called for economic abuse education within the promised financial education curriculum, alongside safeguards designed with financial firms to limit exploitation of digital products.
Source
the Guardian — 15 November 2026
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