Queen Máxima and Mrs. Dow Jones Take on Financial Health at the Global Inclusive Growth Summit


What happens when one of the world’s leading voices for financial health sits down with one of social media’s loudest champions for money smarts? Something pretty special.

The 2025 Global Inclusive Growth Summit in Washington DC this week saw an unexpected duo sharing the stage: The UN Secretary’s Special Advocate for Financial Health, Queen Maxima of The Netherlands, a veteran of global financial diplomacy, and Haley Sacks, better known as “Mrs. Dow Jones,” a leading social media influencer covering financial issues in the digital age.

Despite the vastly different platforms, Queen Máxima and Mrs. Dow Jones were united by a very shared mission: helping more people build secure, healthy financial lives. Their collaboration marked an exciting moment in how the conversation about financial health is evolving—and who is shaping it. Three themes stood out to us from the conversation:

1. Financial health is still out of reach for too many
Queen Máxima opened with a stark statistic: 41% of people globally can’t cover a moderate emergency expense. She attributed this to three growing challenges: rising costs, climate-related shocks, and the overwhelming complexity of modern financial services. “Financial health is not a luxury,” she said. “It’s foundational.”

2. Systems—not just individuals—need to change
Haley Sacks underscored that financial health isn’t just about personal responsibility—it’s about the systems people navigate every day. “You can manifest all you want, but if the system isn’t designed for you to win, you’re still going to lose,” she said. Queen Máxima added that only 29% of financially vulnerable people feel in control of their financial lives, pointing to the need for more inclusive, responsive financial tools.

3. Financial misinformation is a real and growing threat
In a world where AI-driven scams and financial misinformation are rising rapidly, Haley emphasized the need for trusted messengers. “Financial literacy doesn’t have to be dry,” she said. “It just has to be real.” Platforms like hers, which engage millions, show how credible, relatable content can spark real behavior change. Queen Máxima echoed this urgency: “Misinformation online is skyrocketing, and it’s often the most vulnerable who lose everything to scams. We need trustworthy voices more than ever.”

This conversation felt particularly meaningful for us at Flourish Ventures. We’ve long supported Queen Máxima’s work in her role as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate (UNSGSA), where she’s spent the past 15 years driving the global agenda for financial inclusion and health. (Our own Managing Partner Tilman Ehrbeck chairs the UNSGSA Reference Group.)

At the same time, we’ve partnered with Mrs. Dow Jones for the last three years as part of our Media & Money ecosystem initiative. In that time, she’s quadrupled her audience and sharpened her storytelling around financial health. She’s proof that financial topics don’t have to be boring—and that Gen Z and Millennials want real, relatable money content from people they trust. (A recent survey found that 76% of Gen Z turns to platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit for financial advice.)

Seeing these two leaders together—one influencing policymakers and global financial institutions, the other redefining how millions engage with money—was more than just a great moment. It was a glimpse into what the future of the conversation about financial health can look like: cross-generational, platform-native, globally informed, and deeply human.