Case Study · 2026 · CareTech × FinTech
Transforming invisible caregiving into verifiable economic opportunity.
Domestic and care workers power daily life in India — yet the system doesn't see them.
0.00M
Domestic workers
0.00%
Formally registered
0%
No employment contract
<0%
Insured
0%
Cash payments
Millions of caregivers were being paid in cash, without contracts, verification, or recourse — locked out of formal credit, insurance, and mobility.
Care is the invisible infrastructure of every household. Without recognition, workers cannot access loans, healthcare, or retirement — and employers cannot verify trust.
Domestic workers, nannies, elder-care attendants, employers, housing societies, contractors, and the broader financial ecosystem.
A conversation with a domestic worker who had cared for a family for 12 years — and still couldn't open a bank account.
Trigger timeline
Observation
Interview
Insight
Framing
03 · Challenge
How Might We
A mixed-method study across primary interviews, field visits, and competitive benchmarking.
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Interview participants
0
Field visits
0h
Hours of conversation
Primary Research
Secondary Research
Competitive Analysis
Field Study
Interviews
Affinity Mapping
Insight 01
Workers depend on word-of-mouth chains — trust travels through people, not platforms.
Insight 02
Without contracts, workers can't demonstrate history for credit or new jobs.
Insight 03
90% of payments are cash — leaving no digital record of income.
Insight 04
Both sides are cautious; workers fear exploitation, employers fear theft.
Insight 05
Long commutes, unfamiliar homes, and no formal grievance path.
Insight 06
Skills accumulate but never translate into recognition or higher pay.
Domestic Worker · 42
"I've worked in the same building for eight years. Nobody knows my name at the bank."
Employer · 34
"I trust her with my child — I just wish it was simpler to pay her digitally."
Society Manager · 51
"I know every worker in the compound, but the system knows none."
Contractor · 38
"I match people to homes — but there's no way to prove they're good."
Care Recipient · 78
"She takes care of me like family — that should count for something."
Stage
Emotion
Uncertain
Pain
Long, unsafe
Opportunity
Verified routes
Stage
Emotion
Cautious
Pain
New homes, no records
Opportunity
Digital check-in
Stage
Emotion
Focused
Pain
Task ambiguity
Opportunity
Clear scope
Stage
Emotion
Anxious
Pain
Cash uncertainty
Opportunity
Instant digital
Stage
Emotion
Tired
Pain
No proof of work
Opportunity
Care Credits earned
Cash paid weekly, no logging
Verbal contracts through referrals
Trust built through repeated presence
Employer → worker → community network
Digital check-ins as new ritual
Ratings → visibility → opportunity
Logo
Typography
Color palette
Spacing & Grid
Buttons
Cards
Accessibility WCAG
Components
Tokens
Objectives
Validate onboarding, payments, and Care Credits
Tasks
8 core tasks across worker and employer flows
Sample
12 workers · 8 employers · 3 society managers
Findings
Trust cues and simplicity drove adoption
Iterations
Reduced onboarding from 9 to 5 steps
Before vs After
Task success from 62% → 91%
Iteration 01 · Onboarding simplified
Iteration 02 · Payments reframed as receipts
Iteration 03 · Care Credits made tangible
Validated
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Research participants
0
Primary personas
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User flows
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Screens designed
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Components
0%
WCAG AA coverage
Projected
0.00M
Potential users
$0M
Business value
0%
Trust improvement
0×
Financial inclusion lift
Future validation
Workers
Visibility & credit
Employers
Verified trust
Banks
New customer segment
Government
Formalization data
NGOs
Reach & impact
Insurance
Risk data & coverage
Housing societies
Safety registry
Training providers
Skill certification
Care is infrastructure. Designing for invisibility means designing for dignity.
Prioritized simplicity over feature depth; verification through community, not paperwork.
Speed of onboarding vs. depth of verification — we chose trust ladders.
Deeper co-design sessions with workers as decision-makers, not just participants.
Learned to hold ambiguity while giving the team clear next steps.
Every screen touched banks, homes, societies, and government — one design language wasn't enough.
Vernacular-first and low-literacy UX are not optional in India.
Change comes from ritual, not from features.
"The most valuable work isn't always the most visible. Design can change that."