Back to the future - the Windrush generation laid the foundation for a fintech startup | Latest press releases | PressGo

22 June is Windrush Day in the UK to mark the arrival of Caribbean people on the Empire Windrush 75 years ago
Financial exclusion led the Windrush generation to turn to the informal “pardna” money system they used back home
Bank of England launches an exhibition on Windrush Day to highlight the history of pardna
Today’s cost of living crisis means financial exclusion is more widespread than ever
Pardna is now a consumer fintech application in the App Store and Google Play

Seventy-five years after the Windrush Generation introduced an informal community-based financial practice into the UK as a solution to discriminatory financial exclusion, we have now developed this practice into a cutting- edge mobile app as many people face exclusion due to a cost of living crisis.

22 June marks the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks, and there will be Windrush Day celebrations, education and activities throughout the UK to highlight the history and contribution of Caribbean people in the UK, including an exhibition at the Bank of England. The trials, tribulations and injustice they had, and still have, to endure over the years are well documented.

One particular type of injustice the Windrush Generation faced was the discriminatory practices from banks and lending institutions which led them to turn to an informal, community-based financial activity they practiced back home. Known as “pardna” in Jamaica but with many different names elsewhere, this practice has now been developed into a cutting-edge mobile application by fintech startup, Pardna.

A trust-based communal activity, pardna allows you to leverage the strength of the collective in order to quickly raise funds or save up within your close-knit group. And now, as a mobile app, it uses the latest technology and Open Banking regulations from the Competition and Markets Authority to digitise the entire process.

“With instant identity checks and secure bank connections, Pardna App is an innovative spin on a traditional communal activity.” said the company’s founder, Paul Henriques. “Pardna App is authentically built upon the legacy of the Windrush Generation.”

Fintech apps are increasingly popular with consumers. With the cost of living crisis truly biting, alternatives to the short-term, high-cost credit trap is needed more than ever.

“As a child of parents who came to the UK during the Windrush era, I used to deliver my parent’s pardna money on a Saturday morning, taking a brown envelope stuffed with cash to the group organiser when I should have been at home watching cartoons. They, and I, would have loved to have used Pardna App instead!” - Paul Henriques, founder and CEO, Pardna.

For more information about Pardna visit: https://pardna.com

ENDS

Press Contact

Paul Henriques, founder and CEO, Pardna

Telephone: 020 3856 3750

Email: contact@pardna.com

Twitter: @pardna

Media Assets

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ 1eXYwSkD6gEzbiVgucZl4kYS6LjGuV7-r? usp=share_link

Notes to editor

Paul Henriques was born in London to Jamaican parents and grew up with five siblings. He has worked in design and technology for more than 20 years.