With the Accessibility Act Looming, TestDevLab Study Reveals Fintechs’ Major Missed Opportunity for Inclusion and Business Growth

• TestDevLab study found 70% of Europe’s top fintechs fail basic web accessibility standards
• Accessibility failures mainly involve poor keyboard navigation, missing focus indicators, and illogical navigation order
• Lack of accessibility often stems from deprioritization, despite clear business and compliance incentives
• Early integration of accessibility in agile development saves resources, improves SEO, and boosts not only inclusion but the overall performance as well

In April, Riga-based software QA firm TestDevLab reviewed 100 of Europe’s largest fintechs and found only 31% meet basic web accessibility standards. This comes just months before the European Accessibility Act takes effect on June 28th 2025, requiring all digital services to be accessible. With 1 in 4 Europeans living with a disability, fintechs risk non-compliance and are missing a significant opportunity to serve a large user base.

Since 2011, TestDevLab helps companies across industries deliver high-quality digital solutions that meet user expectations. With over a decade of experience supporting startups and Fortune 500 companies, it offers a wide range of QA services and custom software testing solutions tailored to each client’s needs.

Accessibility Act Around the Corner

The study was conducted ahead of the European Accessibility Act, an EU directive set to come into force on June 28, 2025. It highlights that many fintechs remain unprepared despite the fast-approaching deadline. Researchers reviewed the home pages of numerous banking and fintech companies to assess whether users could navigate them using only a keyboard—a basic requirement outlined in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

The analysis focused on key factors such as the ease of moving around the page, whether each interactive element had a visible focus indicator, and if the focus moved logically across visible elements. It also checked for issues like focus shifting to hidden elements and whether users could easily close popups or overlays that appeared during keyboard navigation.

The European Accessibility Act aims to make digital experiences, including websites and mobile apps, accessible to people with various disabilities. With an estimated 100 million Europeans—roughly one in four—experiencing web accessibility challenges, the directive is a major step toward greater digital inclusion.

How Accessibility Gap Hinders Overall Performance

Research reveals that investing in accessibility not only improves user experience but can also deliver significant financial returns, with studies indicating companies can gain approximately €90 for every €1 invested in accessibility improvements. Yet many fintech websites still fall short of meeting even the most basic standards.

As fintech companies sit at the intersection of technology and finance, their ability to create accessible platforms is critical for promoting financial inclusion. However, with 70% of fintech platforms failing to meet basic accessibility requirements, people with disabilities are being left behind, widening the existing accessibility gap in digital finance.

ITKeyMedia approached TestDevLab for a deeper dive into the study, its methods and outcomes. Digital Accessibility Department QA Engineer Emilija Jovcheska Blazhevska explains fintech accessibility in detail:

How did TestDevLab stumble upon the necessity of a study of fintech accessibility?

For the last year, we have been doing our best to educate companies and society about the importance of digital accessibility and inclusive design. After various campaigns, we understood that one of the best ways to make an impact is to look at the facts directly and discuss them openly, with the hope that this approach will resonate with the public. Before this research, we conducted a more extensive study on the telecom industry in Baltic countries.

What are the most common technical failures or design choices that prevent full accessibility compliance among the studied fintechs?

When it comes to keyboard navigation functionality, the most common technical failures include elements that are not accessible when using only keyboard navigation, missing visible focus indicators on elements that are currently focused, focusable components receiving focus in an order that does not preserve meaning and operability, etc.

Are there any correlations between company size, funding stage, or geographic location and accessibility performance?

We didn’t notice any correlation between company size, funding stage, or geographic location and accessibility performance. When it comes to accessibility, each company operates differently and quite often even Enterprise level companies and Startups share similar issues, the only difference is scale.

How are companies currently testing accessibility? Do they do it in-house or outsource, and how effective is it?

It depends on the company’s approach. The rarest strategy is building in-house accessibility testing teams. Some companies recognize the value and importance of accessibility and outsource this service, as it’s often more efficient than maintaining an in-house team. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that many companies still exempt accessibility from their priority lists. At this point, we believe the most important thing is that accessibility testing is implemented, regardless of whether it’s done in-house or outsourced.

What tools and metrics can companies use internally to track their progress сoncerning digital accessibility?

There are many automated tools that can give companies an overview of accessibility of their product (aXe, WAVE, Lighthouse, Siteimprove, etc.). Automated testing tools are invaluable for catching many common accessibility issues, but they can’t fully replicate the experience of a real user with a disability and they may produce inaccurate results. That’s where manual testing comes in. Manual testing involves using assistive technologies, such as screen readers, adaptive switches or keyboard navigation, to interact with the product as a user with disabilities might. So a combination of both practices is the best approach to track the progress concerning digital accessibility.

Do you believe the compromised accessibility of fintechs results from a lack of awareness or simply a deprioritization of accessibility in fintech product teams?

It’s hard to say definitively, as the reasons vary from company to company. However, we believe it’s primarily because businesses don’t see the added value in accessibility, since building accessible solutions requires resources, time, and effort. The industry needs to discuss the business impact more openly – according to the WHO, 16% of the global population currently experiences significant disability. The potential market is huge, but many companies don’t see this opportunity.

What measures should be taken to fix the revealed fintech accessibility issues and by whom? Could you point out any incentives beyond compliance (e.g., customer acquisition, SEO, brand loyalty) that could accelerate the adoption of accessibility standards?

The answer is quite simple. These particular issues uncovered during our test are mostly fairly easy to fix. Importantly, accessibility is no longer just about compliance. When a website is accessible, it becomes easier to use for everyone, not only people with disabilities. This directly contributes to visitor acquisition, conversion, and retention. Additionally, accessibility significantly improves SEO performance, which further improves customer acquisition. Companies that prioritize accessibility gain these business advantages while also serving a broader audience.

Specifically, how could accessibility be more effectively integrated into agile development processes without slowing velocity?

From an Agile development perspective, the earlier accessibility is implemented into the pipeline, the better, easier, and less time-consuming it is to build a compliant solution. If a company waits for accessibility audits during the UAT (User Acceptance Testing) phase, it will be less effective and efficient than if they were conducted during earlier stages. Looking at best practices, the ideal scenario would be to consider accessibility from the design stage of the SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle). This approach prevents costly redesigns later and ensures accessibility is built into the product rather than changed all the time.

‘Financial service products should be accessible to everyone, but our study demonstrates that this is still far from the case. An inclusive internet environment is not only a basic right, but it also drives businesses, who stand to access a wider userbase by making their websites accessible. As we prepare for the European Accessibility Act to come into force in June, businesses who begin to think about this now will benefit twofold—from the peace of mind that compliance brings, but also from the immense benefit and profit opportunity,’ TestDevLab’s Digital Accessibility Testing Department Lead Elīna Šiškeviča emphasizes.