About FiscalSignals
We are an independent, non-commercial research and education platform dedicated to understanding how people make financial decisions across the globe.
Who We Are
Founded on curiosity, built on rigor
FiscalSignals was established by a group of behavioral economists, sociologists, and data scientists who noticed a persistent gap in publicly available research: while macroeconomic data was abundant, granular cross-cultural data on individual financial behavior was scarce and inconsistently gathered.
We set out to close that gap with methodologically consistent, culturally sensitive research that anyone — from a graduate student to a finance minister — can access and build upon.
Today, our platform hosts findings from studies conducted across more than 42 countries, drawing on survey data, ethnographic research, and longitudinal household panels spanning nearly a decade.
Core Principles
What guides our work
Every study, publication, and dataset we produce is governed by four non-negotiable commitments.
FiscalSignals accepts no funding from financial product providers, investment firms, or any entity with a commercial interest in influencing research outcomes. Our findings are never for sale.
Our survey instruments, sampling frameworks, and data processing pipelines are documented and published alongside findings. Peer review is built into every major publication cycle.
We design studies that capture the full spectrum of financial life — not just the experiences of the formally banked, the highly educated, or residents of major urban centers.
All publications, datasets, and educational content are freely accessible on this platform. We do not operate a paywall, a premium tier, or any paid advisory service.
How We Work
Our research methodology
Producing reliable cross-cultural financial data requires deliberate design at every stage. Here is how a typical study moves from question to publication.
Research questions are developed in consultation with local academic partners in each target country to ensure cultural relevance and linguistic accuracy. Survey instruments undergo iterative piloting before deployment.
We use a combination of online panels, telephone surveys, and in-person interviews depending on the digital infrastructure and population composition of each country. Sampling targets are stratified by age, income quartile, and geographic region.
Data is cleaned, weighted, and analysed using established quantitative methods. All findings are subject to internal review by senior researchers and, for major publications, external peer review.
Results are published on this platform in accessible formats including summary reports, data tables, and visual explainers. Raw data is made available for academic use on request, subject to participant privacy protections.
Our Team
The researchers behind the data
Our core team combines expertise in behavioral economics, economic sociology, data science, and comparative policy analysis.
Behavioral economist with 15 years studying cross-cultural savings patterns in Europe and Latin America. Former research fellow at the University of Bologna.
Development economist specializing in informal savings systems and mobile money adoption across sub-Saharan Africa. Affiliated with the University of Lagos.
Computational social scientist whose work focuses on cross-national survey harmonization and the statistical modelling of financial risk tolerance in East Asia.
Our Belief
Financial literacy begins with financial understanding
Before people can improve their financial behavior, they need to understand why they behave the way they do — and so do the institutions and governments that support them. That is what our research is for.
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