Senior Advisor & Research Fellow
Consumer Finance Institute, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia

Tom Akana is a Senior Advisor and Research fellow in the Consumer Finance Institute who focuses on consumer decision-making, payment cards, and the impact of technology and regulation on consumer payment habits. Prior to joining the Reserve Bank in 2018, he spent two decades working in the credit card industry, analyzing and predicting customer behavior and implementing business changes in response to the evolving regulatory environment. In the Consumer Finance Institute, Tom expands the scope of that work to the broader payments and consumer lending landscape, examining how established tools interact with new ideas to influence consumer behavior.

Tom’s early work with CFI related to consumer payment choice, innovative financial products for immigrant communities, and consumer contactless payment adoption. In 2020, he launched and managed the CFI COVID-19 Survey of Consumers to track the effects of the pandemic on employment, income, and spending habits, generating a series of special reports and research briefs shedding light on the financial progression of the pandemic at the consumer level. In 2023, he established the Labor, Income, Finances, and Expectations (LIFE) Survey to build on his previous survey work and establish a new resource within the Federal Reserve System to investigate and understand consumer behavior.

Tom has a bachelor’s degree in American studies and psychology from Georgetown University.