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FinTech Weekly Magazine

  • New Kids on the Block: Where Fintech Meets Sharing Economy

    The sharing economy continues to grow and disrupt entire industries.

    A recent report published by the Brooking Institute concluded that the sharing economy would become a major part of the global economy.

  • The Open Ecosystem – How Banks Can Keep Pace with Fintech Disruptors

    Merchant banks and acquirers have hit a vendor-shaped wall. The lack of choice in payment terminals is crippling banks who are currently at the mercy of the hardware vendors, and are unable to offer a payment device that meets the needs of their modern merchant customers. For years, there has been no route around for banks and acquirers, but now a pioneering concept is set to put the power back into their hands.

  • Don’t compete with Fintechs; Build your business on top of them

    The financial industry is not new to innovations. As the human civilizations became more and more sophisticated, there was a need to create new financial products to serve the ever-evolving requirements of these complex societies. Technology in the financial sector is also not new and is around for a few decades now. Machine readable cheques, automated data processing, automated teller machines and electronic payment systems made banking easier, accelerated innovations and gave rise to various new financial products in the second half of 20th century. But the proliferation of Fintechs in last decade or so has been driven mainly by the advancements in software and internet. Given that financial services are made up of non-tangible goods (unlike automobiles, oil, housing, pharmaceuticals etc.), the financial services industry is most vulnerable to the disruptions in information technologies.

  • The problem with Fintech

    Everyone wants a piece of the $100 trillion pie. I can rattle off a list of 50 payments companies you’ve never heard of and never will. Companies that do millions of dollars in transactions a day. Everyone has a different niche, a different value proposition - more security, less personal data storage, more rewards, less fees – whatever. You want to pay with the palm of your hand? Yeah, there’s an app for that too. And there’s nothing wrong with any of this. Competition fuels technological progress, and the payments space is in desperate need of progress. Progress to eliminate the pain, cost, and time spent dealing with traditional payment processes.

  • Polish FinTech companies attract interest abroad

    FinTech is currently one of the fastest growing sectors of technology. It is expected that by the year 2020, investment in FinTech companies will grow to 46 billon USD, while global investment in this sector today amounts to more than 26 billion USD (Statista). Because of their high degree of innovation, solutions originating in East-Central Europe, including Poland, are the subject of considerable interest in the branch and are represented at many international conferences. This year is no exception, and on 7-8 February at Finovate London, we will be able to see some new and interesting FinTech from Poland.

  • Open letter to Mark Carney on Robo-Advice

    I am very pleased that Mark Carney has robo-advice on his mind. For him to be speaking about a nascent industry, he must believe that firms using technology to help manage people’s money will grow to become a significant part of the market. This is a fantastic promotion of the industry and one I am extremely proud to be a part of as we put the client back into the heart of our service.

    However, in his speech he appears concerned about robo-advisors becoming a risk to our well-functioning financial system. The argument is that they may lead to excess volatility or increase pro-cyclicality as a result of herding. I see his attack on robo-advice as misinformed for several reasons.

  • Why banks must look beyond today’s crypto key management standards

    Banking operations are diversifying, fast. Outsourcers control more of many big banks’ core and non-core operations than ever before. The age of mobility has dawned and vastly increased both the number and the kind of devices that are interfacing with banks’ core systems.

  • InsurTech: What to expect in 2017

    InsurTech well and truly made its mark in 2016, stealing some of the thunder (and investment) away from its big brother, fintech, and with tonnes of exciting start-ups and innovations hitting the market.

    So, what does the next 12 months have in store for us?

  • The future digital currency may not be the Bitcoin

    Two years back after my trip to the US, I still had a coin of 1 dollar cent in my wallet. In a supermarket in Berlin, mistaking it for a 2 euro cents coin, I presented it to the cashier. The cashier immediately recognized it and returned it to me saying it’s not the right coin and they don’t accept it. Realizing my mistake I presented the right coin. The two coins (1 dollar cent and 2 euro cents) are almost of same size, weight and material. Why couldn’t the supermarket accept it?

  • Peer-To-Peer Payments in the Fintech Revolution

    The financial technologies (FinTech) revolution, which has the potential to disrupt traditional financial services and banking systems in most jurisdictions, is likely to see the cutting of costs and an improvement in the quality of financial services.

  • Saving Financial Services in a Fickle Digital Culture

    According to a recent survey, more than half of banking executives want to improve their social and mobile channels. However, the same survey revealed that over 50% of consumers did not feel their bank knows them as a customer (TimeTrade). The challenge facing banking executives in 2017 is bigger than just shifting budget towards mobile app development and Facebook strategy, it’s the ability to connect the dots across multiple channels resulting in more accurate and relevant communications between a financial institution and its audience. By taking this ground-up approach to marketing, financial leadership can invest in accurate, impactful marketing that drives brand loyalty now and for years to come.

  • Why Portugal? Why Lisbon? – Interview with João Vasconcelos, Secretary of State of Industry

    We had the privilege to talk to João Vasconcelos, Portugal's Secretary of State of Industry and former Executive Director at Startup Lisboa, about the thriving tech scene and reasons for fintechs to come to Lisbon. Besides the beautiful landscape and great people, of course.

  • Why you still can’t trust banks (and what FinTech is doing about it)

    Banks acting in a manner that leads to distrust of financial services is nothing new. The financial crisis, market rigging and - most recently - a scandal at Wells Fargo show that banks continue to work for no-one but themselves. Mike Galarza, the CEO of Entryless, discusses why banks are untrustworthy and what FinTech firms are doing about it.

  • Rising Interest in Blockchain Technologies, Amid Legal Issues – Report from Russia

    Blockchain technologies are attracting increased interest from Russian financial institutions and IT companies, and may be poised to overcome skepticism from Russian regulators. This is perhaps not surprising, given Russia’s prominence in the technology sector, with over 120,000 local programmers and continuing growth in ecommerce and online activities. However, certain legal obstacles may still pose challenges for promoters and developers of cryptocurrencies and other blockchain applications.

  • "There is some real disruption mixed in with the noise" – Interview with Brett Myers

    We met Brett Myers, Co-Founder and CEO of leading P2P currency exchange marketplace CurrencyFair to talk about Brexit, different types of customers and how banks are not negligent enough to fall behind in the long run.

  • An Investor's Opinion on Collaboration and Co-Creation

    Interview with João Freire de Andrade, Head of Venture Capital at BiG - Banco de Investimento Global who we met at the WebSummit 2016 in Lisbon last week. João talked to us about the Portuguese startups scene, investing in startups and how this will change banks.

  • Technology and the future of non-bank financing 

    The surge in technology solutions for financial services providers has demonstrably transformed the banking industry: from the ATM to online bill pay to the mobile banking platform, a consumer has little reason to visit a storefront location these days and financial institutions are reaping the profitable rewards of providing solutions that require less in-person contact.

  • Making sense of data access approaches [Whitepaper]

    [SPONSORED] Consumer access to financial data has become a hot topic of late—and with good reason. U.S. consumers are embracing a proliferation of digital financial services, spanning everything from alternative lending to automated investing. Innovation in this space rests on consumers’ ability to grant access to their personal financial data, which often sits within a bank or other financial institution. This dynamic has raised difficult questions around security, data, and user experience, to name a few.

  • An industry matured: highlights from Mobey Day 2016

    Sirpa Nordlund, Executive Director, Mobey Forum, shares key takeaways from the international association’s Mobey Day banking and fintech conference, held in Barcelona last week.

  • Putting the "Investor" Back into "Investor Relations" for Alternative Investments

    Private funds are the fastest growing category of investments, with estimates of current assets reaching $10T, and projected to grow to $18T by 2020. As the economy has recovered from the Great Recession, more and more investors have entered into alternative investments.

  • On the attack: How FinTech is piling the pressure on banks

    Banks are staring down the barrel of a loaded gun. Preparing to squeeze the trigger is an army of agile FinTech businesses. Here, Mike Galarza, the CEO and founder of Entryless, discusses how FinTech - aided by startups - is taking the fight to traditional financial institutions.

  • Hack a bank from the inside – and why innovating hurts

    Hacking a bank is serious business. This is true in terms of hacking as an illegal activity aimed at getting unauthorized access to data and information. Hacking a bank with the institution supporting the action is another matter. And it is a completely wonderful experience.

  • Planning for the Bank’s Future: Why Advanced Data Analytics Is Paramount in 2017?

    2016 has been a big year for advanced analytics. Banks that are already turning customer data into smart, actionable insights see major pay-offs in new business, better customer targeting and segmentation, faster decision-making, efficiencies in operations, and progress in risk management. As the banking industry approaches strategic planning season, it’s time for leadership to think long-term about the bank’s goals and future growth and how advanced analytics can support these objectives. Why should data science and advanced analytics be a critical component to the bank’s 2017 business plan? Consider these compelling reasons:

  • The Benefits of Record & Replay to Wealth Managers

    Whether for business or pleasure, the Internet, social media and digital access to information and applications, are a fundamental and fully integrated aspect of modern life. With so much personal technology now used day-to-day – from smart phones, to mobile applications, to the computerization of everyday activities that we all take for granted - wealth management customers increasingly expect 24/7 access to both digitally-delivered financial information and online assistance.

  • How [And Which] FinTech Startups Are Breaking Banking

    I’ve talked about how the global financial system is broken and how that freelancers are getting the short end of the stick. The free banking economy goes much deeper than you may think.

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