# Scotland tests bank data as a labour-market indicator

> A Scottish Government feasibility study examined pseudonymised transaction data as a possible supplement to survey-based employment statistics.

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- Publisher: Newsverum
- Section: Economy
- Country: United Kingdom
- Published: 2026-10-15T16:15:27+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-15T16:15:27+00:00
- Event / data period: 2026-10-15
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The Scottish Government assessed whether pseudonymised financial transaction data from about 575,000 NatWest customers could add insight to labour-market statistics. The dataset covered all 32 local authorities and represented around 13.3% of Scotland’s adult population.

Smart Data Foundry combined expert-designed rules with unsupervised clustering across 26 transaction-derived features. Labour-market status was inferred rather than directly observed, producing proxy classifications for employment, unemployment and economic inactivity. The government said the method needs further development and validation across groups before the outputs could be used as official statistics. This is not a random population sample; the unemployed-or-benefits-reliant classification also differs from the International Labour Organization definition of unemployment.

## Data

### Scotland tests bank data as a labour-market indicator

Data from about 575,000 NatWest customers was examined in a proof of concept for labour-market indicators.

Methodology: The measure does not directly observe employment; it is a proxy classification inferred from customer transaction data and requires further validation.

| date | label | description | status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-15 | Scotland tests bank data as a labour-market indicator | Data from about 575,000 NatWest customers was examined in a proof of concept for labour-market indicators. | occurred |

Sources: <https://www.gov.scot/publications/using-financial-data-to-enhance-labour-market-statistics-in-scotland/> · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/reported-event?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/reported-event?lang=en&format=csv)

### Study sample

Dataset described in the official feasibility report.

Methodology: The measure does not directly observe employment; it is a proxy classification inferred from customer transaction data and requires further validation.

| Measure | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| NatWest pseudonymised customers | 575000 | approximately |
| Scottish local authorities covered | 32 | all |
| Transaction-derived features | 26 | used in model |

Sources: <https://www.gov.scot/publications/using-financial-data-to-enhance-labour-market-statistics-in-scotland/> · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/reported-sample?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/reported-sample?lang=en&format=csv)

### Population coverage

Approximate share of the population aged 18 and over.

Methodology: The measure does not directly observe employment; it is a proxy classification inferred from customer transaction data and requires further validation.

| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Share of Scottish adult population | 13.3 |

Sources: <https://www.gov.scot/publications/using-financial-data-to-enhance-labour-market-statistics-in-scotland/> · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/population-coverage?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/scotland-tests-bank-data-labour-market-indicator/data/population-coverage?lang=en&format=csv)

## Sources

- [Scottish Government](<https://www.gov.scot/publications/using-financial-data-to-enhance-labour-market-statistics-in-scotland/>) (Source checked: 2026-10-15; Published: 2026-10-15)

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