Bloomberg has learned about ways to detect early signs of dementia in bank customers

Changes in financial behavior may indicate cognitive impairment several years before the diagnosis of dementia. This was reported by Bloomberg.

Among the possible signs, experts name overdue payments, a decrease in credit rating, atypical expenses and difficulties in making financial decisions. Consultants who have been working with clients for a long time may also notice recurring questions, unexpected requests to withdraw large amounts, or sudden anxiety about investments. Dementia affects the abilities needed to pay bills, evaluate investments, and detect fraud.

At the same time, some organizations are already preparing bank employees to recognize such changes. The American AARP launched the BankSafe program in 2019. According to her estimates, the training of employees of more than 1.5 thousand financial institutions helped to prevent the loss of customers by $ 550 million. One of the recommendations is to invite clients in advance to choose a trusted person to participate in the discussion of financial issues.

Scientists are developing algorithms capable of finding signs of cognitive decline in the long-term history of credit transactions. It is noted that in the future, the dementia risk indicator could help doctors plan treatment, and banks evaluate suspicious transactions.

However, researchers point to threats to privacy and discrimination: classifying a person as a risk group can affect obtaining a loan, employment, and other opportunities. It is also necessary to take into account the differences in the financial behavior of social and economic groups.

Matt Haslinger, a representative of M&T Bank, stressed that banks should not independently diagnose cognitive impairments, and decisions based on such data require strict monitoring.

Scientists have linked declining incomes to early dementia 15 years before diagnosis

As the journal Neurology determined in July, people with early-onset dementia may experience declining incomes and loss of work productivity many years before diagnosis. The analysis showed that income differences between patients with early dementia and the control group had been noticeable for 15 years. During this period, the average annual loss of labor productivity was €2,774 per patient.