Ariel Dangelo Turned Personal Tragedy into a Mission to Aid Individuals with Financial Wellbeing with Helo
Contributor
In the aftermath of a life-altering tragedy, Ariel Dangelo found an unshakable purpose. A near-fatal horse-riding accident in 2020 left her paralyzed from the shoulders down, with no guarantee she'd ever walk again. Yet, against all odds, Ariel regained her mobility. While her story of physical recovery is extraordinary, it is the financial foundation she built beforehand that truly defined her outcome. 'I was 27 when this happened and couldn't do anything myself,' she recalls. 'But because my husband and I had already paid off our house, built a substantial emergency fund, and lived within our means, I could afford the treatments and therapies I needed—even the ones insurance couldn't cover. Most people aren't that stable, especially those like us who don't have financial assistance from their family.'
This realization that the majority of Americans are just one unexpected event away from financial ruin ignited Ariel's mission to make financial stability accessible to everyone. That mission took shape in Helo, a revolutionary financial software designed to empower users to take control of their money and their futures.
Helo is not just another 'budgeting tool'; it is a comprehensive financial management system. The app teaches users how to live within their means through their smart banking platform which allocates their income to strategically save, and live a financially sustainable life, all while having a positive relationship with money.
The journey began with Ariel's first company, Nightingale Wealth Solutions, a women-owned fiduciary financial advisory firm specializing in helping families and high-net-worth individuals achieve their financial goals. Yet this financial advisor-innovator, who has been in the industry for more than a decade, noticed a pattern: no matter how much money her clients earned, few had a clear understanding of their expenses. Ariel further explains, 'Everyone can tell you what they make, but almost no one can tell you how much they spend. Would you take advice from a CFO who could only tell you the revenue of a business and not the operating costs? Without understanding the expenses, how will one make informed decisions?'
She realized this knowledge gap wasn't limited to her affluent clients; it was a systematic issue affecting households across the economic spectrum. Meanwhile, predatory financial products such as earned wage access programs and buy-now-pay-later schemes were exacerbating the problem. 'Helo was born out of necessity,' Ariel says. 'I wanted to create a tool that doesn't just manage money but transforms the way people interact with it—building lasting habits that eventually lead to financial freedom.'
Helo stands out by combining behavioral science with cutting-edge technology to address financial health holistically, and for all ages—whether it's a Gen-Zer who has just started working or is at their peak as a professional, to retirees who want to sustain until the end of time. With its offerings such as automated cash flow management, emergence fund creation, debt reduction tools, and comprehensive financial insights, Helo is giving its users a lifeline.
Ariel's personal experience, analytical mind, and decade-long industry expertise give her a unique perspective on this urgency for financial preparedness. She notes, 'People don't understand the importance of having an emergency fund until it's too late. I dream that, in my lifetime, every American family has a 10-thousand-dollar emergency fund. That level of security changes lives.'
Since its inception, Helo has been steadily gaining traction. The platform has already launched the Beta version in the web-based application format, with a premium version of the same along with the mobile app slated for release in Q1 of 2025. But Ariel's ambitions don't stop there. 'In the next three years, we plan to start our global expansion of Helo. Our ultimate goal is to make financial wellness a global standard.'
Helo's tagline, 'For a Better Future', encapsulates its ethos: empowering users to master their finances through smarter habits and innovative technology. 'Helo is not just another fintech App trying to sell you something, we are protecting our client's data, protecting our client's financial interests, we are protecting people from the little spending goblin within all of us. Empowering individuals, strengthening families, and cultivating better communities, leads to a healthier Nation and brighter future,' the visionary founder concludes.
Helo is also in the midst of its second capital raise, which the startup will use to build out its sales and marketing capabilities. If you are interested in investing, please reach out to invest@gohelo.com.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
6 minutes ago
- Axios
Polymarket to return to U.S. after acquisition
Polymarket is poised to legally return to the U.S. as prediction markets become an increasingly popular place for Americans to chase riches based on future outcomes. Why it matters: Polymarket has technically been blocked for Americans, but an unknown number of users have found ways to use the platform. Driving the news: The crypto-based events market announced Monday that it expects to provide trading access to Americans after acquiring derivatives exchange QCX for $112 million. QCX comes with a coveted license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), allowing it to legally provide markets in the U.S. "The transaction marks a significant step toward expanding access to Polymarket's category-defining platform in the United States, enabling more users than ever to trade prediction market contracts with regulatory clarity and confidence," Polymarket said in a statement. The big picture: Polymarket's popularity surged in 2024 as a place for traders to bet on the U.S. presidential election and other campaigns, but it hasn't been allowed to operate here for several years. One of its biggest competitors, Kalshi, is CFTC regulated and is legal for American users, though it's facing a legal battle over its right to offer sports event contracts. Context: Polymarket received notice this month that the DOJ and CFTC "had both closed their investigations" into the company after "examining if Polymarket continued to allow US-based traders onto its platform despite a 2022 settlement with the CFTC in which it promised to block them because it wasn't registered," Bloomberg reported. What they're saying: "Now, with the acquisition of QCEX, we are laying the foundation to bring Polymarket home — re-entering the US as a fully regulated and compliant platform that will allow Americans to trade their opinions," Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan said Monday in a statement.
CNN
13 minutes ago
- CNN
Beef prices are the new egg prices. They're soaring
First it was eggs, now it's beef. The last time Americans likely noticed spiking prices at the grocery store was when eggs reached record-highs. Since then, egg prices have fallen after the deadly avian flu outbreak was contained and producers built back supply. Now, beef prices are hitting records, rising almost 9% since January, according to the Department of Agriculture, and retailing for $9.26 a pound. June's consumer price index showed steak and ground beef prices are up 12.4% and 10.3%, respectively, over the last year. But lowering beef prices will be harder than lowering the price of eggs. 'Beef is way more complicated than eggs,' said Michael Swanson, chief agriculture economist at Wells Fargo. 'The cattle industry is still the 'Wild West' of the protein market, whereas the egg market is more 'Corporate America' with its supply and demand management.' Record-high beef prices have been a decade in the making due to shrinking herds, drought conditions and the rise of imported beef — all while demand stayed strong. Last month, Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King said during their earnings call that 'beef is experiencing the most challenging market conditions we've ever seen.' Cattle herd sizes are at their lowest levels in 74 years, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). Cattle ranching is not as profitable as it once was, and experts say many ranchers have given up. 'Even with these record high prices, margins for cattle farmers and ranchers are razor thin thanks to continued elevated supply costs,' wrote AFBF economist Bernt Nelson in a market intel report from May. One of those supply costs: feed. Sustained drought throughout large portions of US ranchland have dried out pastures, forcing ranchers to rely on more expensive feed for cattle instead of free-grazing grass, according to the AFBF. At the same time, Americans are looking for more options. Imported beef from countries like Argentina, Australia and Brazil now account for roughly 8% of US beef consumption, according to Swanson. At the same time, exports of beef have slowed — dropping 22% in May compared to the year before, according to the AFBF. 'It's a big change that we've seen this year that wasn't on anybody's playbook. Only a couple of years ago, we were net neutral, where we exported some and imported some,' said Swanson, adding that we'll 'continue to see more beef consumption in the United States being supplied by the world market, and they're happy to do it since we're the highest priced beef in the world.' But Americans continue to eat beef despite record prices, according to the AFBF, with overall US demand remaining strong. With prices so high, some retailers are finding creative ways to cut costs. Last month, Walmart opened its first-ever owned and operated beef facility. The new facility, located in Olathe, Kansas, allows Walmart to work directly with its suppliers, cutting out a middleman and saving on costs. 'This is the first case-ready facility fully owned and operated by Walmart, and that milestone ensures we're able to bring more consistency, more transparency and more value to our customers,' John Laney, executive vice president of food at Walmart, said in a news release. As to when beef prices may fall for everyone, Nelson says it will likely be up to the consumer. 'US consumer demand for meat historically has grown with improved household financial situations and then falls when incomes drop,' Nelson wrote. 'If consumer confidence falls alongside household financial uncertainty, demand for beef could be at risk, especially in the face of record high retail prices.' That would leave producers and ranchers even worse off. 'I say we're closing in on the peak of this current cycle. That's the real concern that this industry has — nobody wants to be caught holding the bag with higher-priced cattle when cattle prices start to decline, which they will inevitably,' said Swanson.
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Nearly two-thirds disapprove of Trump's handling of inflation: Survey
Nearly two-thirds of Americans disapprove of how President Trump has handled inflation — one of his key campaign promises, a new poll has found six months into Trump's second term. The CBS News/YouGov poll released Sunday also found that half of U.S. adults think that the Trump administration's policies have made them 'financially worse off' and 62 percent think the White House's policies have driven food and grocery costs up. Inflation rose by 2.7 percent in June, as businesses passed the costs of Trump's tariff hikes onto consumers. Trump has insisted, though, that inflation has settled as he has pressed Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates. The White House has cited 'core inflation,' which excludes energy and food prices, as an indicator of positive movement on the issue. Core inflation hit 2.9 percent in June, below the expected 3 percent but up from 2.8 percent the month earlier. 'The USA is Rockin', there is VERY LOW INFLATION,' Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Friday. More than three-fourths of Republicans surveyed in the new poll said they approve of Trump's handling of inflation, while Democrats and independents overwhelmingly disapproved at 95 percent and 72 percent, respectively. The White House didn't immediately provide comment for this story, but it touted Trump's inflation record in a news release last week. 'Every month since President Trump took office, core inflation — the best measure of inflation — has beat or matched expectations,' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Tuesday. 'The data proves that President Trump is stabilizing inflation and the Panicans continue to be wrong about tariffs raising prices.' The president has pressed for lower interest rates, but economists warn that such a move could drive inflation higher. The CBS News/YouGov poll found people were split on the issue: 39 percent said that the White House's priority should be keeping interest rates where they are to try to control inflation; 34 percent said interest rates should be cut; and 27 percent said they were not sure. The CBS News/YouGov poll surveyed 2,343 adults nationwide Wednesday through Friday. The margin of error is 2.5 percentage points.
