Family Banking

As part of Visa’s CEMEA Innovation team, I led the design and co-creation of the Family Banking Setplay — a product innovation framework enabling banks to launch shared, collaborative financial products for families and groups.

Working in close partnership with Discovery Bank, we applied the Setplay to design and deliver a first-of-its-kind shared credit proposition in South Africa. The solution allows family members to pool credit limits, share rewards, and manage finances collaboratively — aligning with Discovery’s shared-value banking philosophy.

Challenge

Families are increasingly looking for collaborative ways to manage money — yet most banking products are designed for individuals.

Discovery Bank wanted to explore:

  • How to extend credit products to serve families and groups in a single, integrated experience

  • How to align financial incentives with healthy spending and repayment behaviors

  • How to create a differentiated product in a competitive retail banking market

Approach

Phase 1 — Framework Creation (Family Banking Setplay)

Defined the core proposition archetypes for family/group financial products

  1. Mapped value exchange models for shared accounts, pooled rewards, and collective goals

  2. Developed UX guidelines for role-based access, spending controls, and shared dashboards

Phase 2 — Co-Creation with Discovery Bank

Facilitated multi-day workshops with cross-functional teams (product, marketing, technology)

  1. Co-created personas and customer journeys for primary and secondary account holders

  2. Built low- and high-fidelity prototypes of the shared credit experience

Phase 3 — Product Definition & Delivery

Finalized MVP feature set (shared limit management, individual cards, pooled rewards)

  1. Defined onboarding, usage, and communication flows

  2. Provided implementation guidelines to Discovery Bank’s internal development teams

Outcome

  • Market Launch: Discovery Bank’s Shared Credit product, built on the Family Banking Setplay principles

  • Differentiation: First retail banking proposition in South Africa enabling pooled credit access and shared rewards across multiple family members

  • Behavioral Impact Potential: Encourages responsible credit usage, collective goal-setting, and increased engagement with Discovery’s ecosystem

My contribution

  1. Led Design Thinking Workshops with Discovery Bank stakeholders to define user needs, behavioral triggers, and product features.

  2. Designed the Family Banking Setplay Framework, detailing UX patterns, product mechanics, and go-to-market considerations.

  3. Collaborated on Strategy, aligning Discovery Bank’s shared-value model with Visa’s payments innovation roadmap.

  4. Created UI/UX flows and visual assets for the shared credit journey

  5. Ensured behavioral design principles were embedded in product decisions to drive adoption and trust.

This project shows how strategic product frameworks and design-led collaboration can accelerate the path from idea to market launch. By combining Visa’s innovation methodologies with Discovery’s shared-value model, we created a product that redefines how families experience credit — from individual ownership to shared empowerment.