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Press release · WCRC Intelligence Unit · Fintech & Financial Services · Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026

Australian Ethical leads WCRC's 2026 D2C fintech table as values-led fund managers outscore America's payment apps

A WCRC analysis of 25 fintech and financial services brands across its America and Australia & New Zealand Most Trusted D2C rankings finds that purpose and ownership earn more trust than speed and scale.

By WCRC Intelligence Unit · Published 13 November 2026 · For immediate release
Fintech & Financial Services: WCRC Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026 industry analysis cover

13 November 2026. Australian Ethical is the most trusted direct-to-consumer fintech and financial services brand across WCRC's 2026 Most Trusted D2C rankings, with a WCRC D2C Trust Score of 81.96. It ranks #21 in Australia & New Zealand's Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026.

The analysis, published today by the WCRC Intelligence Unit, brings together 25 fintech and financial services brands: 16 from America's Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026 and nine from Australia & New Zealand's Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026. India's ranking has no brands in this industry.

Three investment managers from Australia and New Zealand hold the top three places: Australian Ethical (81.96), Simplicity (81.84, ANZ #24) and Milford (81.36, ANZ #28). Venmo (81.04, US #12) is the most trusted American fintech brand, followed by Chime (80.36, US #15).

Ownership sets the leaders apart. Simplicity is owned by a registered charity that receives 15% of all fees, Milford's employees are owners in the business, and Fisher Funds is majority owned by a New Zealand community trust.

America's group is larger and more varied, from payment apps (Venmo, Cash App) and digital banks (Chime, SoFi, Dave) to crypto exchanges (Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini) and lenders (Affirm, LendingClub, Upstart).

“In money, trust is earned by showing whose side you are on. The leaders in this table are owned by charities, community trusts or their own staff, or bound by a published ethical charter. America's apps have more users, but the brands that put purpose first are the ones customers trust most.”

WCRC Intelligence Unit

The leaders in each ranking

  • US Most Trusted D2CVenmo #12 · 81.04
  • ANZ Most Trusted D2CAustralian Ethical #21 · 81.96

Read the full report: all 25 brands

Notes to editors

  • The analysis covers America's Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026 (16 brands); Australia & New Zealand's Most Trusted D2C Brands 2026 (9 brands).
  • Revenue figures are as per company filings for the latest available financial year.
  • Only brands whose owners publish financial results were considered for these rankings.
  • Ranked brands may licence their WCRC badge for marketing use. Contact consulting@wcrcint.com.

About WCRC. WCRC (World Centre for Research and Consulting) is an independent research and consulting organisation. It publishes brand rankings including the World's Most Powerful 100 Brands, regional and national Most Powerful 100 Brands rankings, and national Most Trusted D2C Brands rankings, through its sites wcrcint.com, wcrcleaders.com and mostvaluablebrands.com. The WCRC Intelligence Unit publishes research briefings and industry analysis.

Media contact. WCRC Intelligence Unit, consulting@wcrcint.com

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Disclaimers

  1. Who was considered. Only brands whose owners publish financial results were considered for the underlying rankings. Brands that do not publish their financials have not been assessed or ranked. Not being in this analysis says nothing about a brand's quality.
  2. Source of every fact. This analysis uses only the facts published in WCRC's 2026 rankings named on this page, each checked twice against independent public sources. Scores, ranks and facts are as published in those rankings.
  3. Comparing scores. Brands from different rankings in the same family share one scoring method, so their scores can be read side by side. Scores marked provisional are WCRC desk assessments awaiting validation by the WCRC Business Intelligence Unit.
  4. Independent opinion. This analysis is WCRC's independent research and opinion, based on publicly available information as of November 2026. It is not an endorsement of any brand.
  5. Not a valuation or advice. Scores measure brand strength. They are not a financial valuation, and nothing here is investment, financial or purchasing advice.
  6. Revenue. Revenue is shown as per company filings for the latest available financial year. Where only group revenue is published, the group figure is shown and labelled. WCRC has not audited any figure.
  7. Trademarks. Brand names and trademarks belong to their owners and are used here for identification only. Their use does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by WCRC.
  8. Use of the badge. Ranked brands may use their WCRC badge only as provided, unaltered and linked to their ranking page. Any other use of the WCRC name, badge or data needs WCRC's written permission.
  9. Rights and AI. © 2026 WCRC. All rights reserved. WCRC's scoring methods are proprietary. Copying, text and data mining, and use of this content to train artificial intelligence models are not permitted without written permission; WCRC expressly reserves these rights, including under Article 4 of EU Directive 2019/790.
  10. Corrections. To report an error or ask for a review, write to consulting@wcrcint.com. Corrections are made promptly.