Unison, recognizing the important contributions that the “Wired Differently" series brings to the fintech community, has agreed to partner with Innovate Finance to discuss its socially impactful efforts to help homeowners in the U.S. become financially independent by unlocking the wealth trapped in their homes.

Launched on April 17, 2023 at their Global Summit, Innovate Finance presented its series, “Wired Differently,” produced by BBC StoryWorks. The series meets the innovators who are “Wired Differently” than the status quo and are shaping the world of finance to help people from all walks of life improve their financial wellbeing. Innovate Finance’s branded films demonstrate the opportunities financial technology creates globally for consumers and businesses.

CEO of Innovate Finance Janine Hirt expounds: “FinTech adoption is on the rise globally, and we’re delighted to be working with BBC StoryWorks for the second time to bring the story of how FinTechs are supporting financial inclusion and wellbeing to life. [...] We hope this series introduces the power of this technology to even more people looking to improve their financial wellbeing.”

Unison was chosen for its pioneering approach to a conundrum: how can homeowners tap into their equity without taking on debt and use it to improve their financial welfare, and how can investors obtain efficient, diversified access to the lucrative residential real estate asset class? The equity sharing agreement is Unison’s answer. In the agreement, the homeowner is offered up to 15% of their home’s current value in cash, in exchange for a percentage of the house’s future change in value.

The short film about Unison spotlights Easan Katir, a homeowner who discovered Unison while researching ways to financially prepare for retirement. His family’s home had appreciated, but the traditional options didn’t appeal to him because they all demanded monthly payments. With the funds from the Unison Agreement, Katir emphasizes, “We aren’t obsessing about money.” Instead, he describes an increase in “mental bandwidth and spiritual bandwidth” accompanying the feeling of having a “better financial foundation for our future.”

Theodor Haugen, VP of Customer Experience, highlights the social impact of Unison’s non-debt, non-loan option: “We’re not talking about wealth locked up at the top [...] we’re working with normal people, normal Americans.” Earlier this year, Unison announced its “Homeowner Promise,” the major tenet of which is “Owning with Unison is better.” Haugen expresses an identical sentiment in the video, celebrating Unison’s ability to witness homeowners accomplishing things “they just weren’t able to do before.” That homeowner empowerment is what makes Unison's equity sharing agreements an impactful innovation in the world of fintech.

You can watch the short film at the top of the page, or here.