People arrive at the most important financial moments of their lives without the knowledge they needed years earlier.

As an independent mortgage broker for over 20 years, Marianne Lombardi has sat across the table from thousands of clients. The ones who struggle are not always the ones with the least money. They are the ones whose financial identity tells a story they did not know they were writing.

It is not just about homeownership. It is about every financial decision a person will ever make. Applying for a phone contract, renting your first flat, starting a business, getting credit when you need it most. Your financial identity follows you through all of it.

A thin credit file, an old missed payment, an address that was never registered. These are the things that close doors. And nobody told them. Not school. Not their bank. Not anyone.

Financial Identity started as a course delivered in schools across the West Midlands. Over 2,000 students later, the message is clear: people are hungry for this knowledge. They just have never been given it.

The book is the next step. Practical, honest, and written for real life. A guide to understanding your financial identity and taking control of it before the stakes are high.