Uniting Changemakers at the Global Summit on Economic Abuse

We’re excited to invite allies and activists to share their perspectives on our blog. This guest blog is co-written by Dr. Nicola Sharp-Jeffs, Co-Founder and Head of Secretariat at the International Coalition Against Economic Abuse, and Rebecca Glenn, Co-Founder of the International Coalition Against Economic Abuse and CEO of the Centre for Women's Economic Safety.

To learn more and get involved in the movement to end economic abuse, we invite you to join us at the free, virtual Global Summit on Economic Abuse on November 18th, 2025.

Research in the U.K. shows that 95% of domestic abuse victim-survivors have experienced economic abuse. The figure in the U.S. is 99%. Given these statistics, it is shocking that economic abuse remains one of the most under-recognised forms of coercive control.

Women’s economic inequality is baked into society. As such, economic control by men largely goes unnoticed – hidden in plan sight. With women still expected to be the primary caregiver, their absence from the workforce rarely attracts attention. The idea that it is a man’s responsibility to be the ‘breadwinner’ largely goes unchallenged.

Women may not even recognize that their partner is exerting control over them – until it is too late. This behavior may be introduced as caring – you don’t need to work, I can look after you and the children – or – you’re so busy, why I don’t take care of the finances? It also plays into gender stereotypes – how can you be a good mother if you work?

At the same time, we are increasingly seeing women who are out working being expected to take sole responsibility for the economic wellbeing of the family. They are not dependent on their partner, but his behavior determines how she spends her money and plans the use of her economic resources. Often, she and the children go without and/or get into debt to fund the lifestyle he insists on having.

Of course, this behavior looks different in different countries – it adapts to cultural contexts. But the control remains the same – whether that is through restricting access to money and the things it can buy, exploiting the economic resources of another – including their credit, or sabotaging employment and credit ratings as well as destroying the economic resources a woman does have.

To address this, we are uniting changemakers across the world. The inaugural Global Summit on Economic Abuse will bring together stakeholders from across society to explore how we raise awareness, is being done to tackle it, and most importantly, what can be done to prevent it.