New private bank Volans gears up for launch in Australia
A new private bank named Volans is gearing up for launch in Australia with the aim to “make banking better” for high-net-worth customers through the integration of advanced AI technology.
Volans’ CEO Hayden Matthews (Image: LinkedIn)
Founded in 2023 by Hayden Matthews and Glenn White, former bankers at Credit Suisse and HSBC, Volans, which the company explains to FinTech Futures is Latin for ‘flying fish’ and symbolises the bank’s “ambition to incorporate agility and adaptability in the fast-changing world of finance”, plans to officially launch in May of this year.
Volans will reportedly offer multicurrency accounts, multi-asset custody services and margin lending facilities, according to Global Private Banker.
The company places a great deal of emphasis on the need to embrace new technology – in particular AI – into its processes to enhance the banking experience for customers and keep up to date with the shifting technological landscape.
Speaking to FinTech Futures, Volans’ CEO, Hayden Matthews, says in a “nod to the digital age”, the bank “aims to leverage facial recognition technology for swift account opening, effectively cutting down on the traditional waiting times”.
In addition, the company plans to utilise technology platforms that smoothly integrate with the existing systems used by wealth managers.
Matthews says there has never been a “pure private bank” in Australia before and his firm is “challenging fundamental assumptions about the nature of banking and what’s really achievable in the future”.
“The big private banks are on borrowed time. They are too big which means it’s difficult to be agile and adopt new technologies. This is our advantage but also why we readily embrace fintech and the opportunities it provides,” he adds.
Established private banks across the globe are starting to realise the need to incorporate more technical solutions, as demonstrated by Belgium-based private bank Banque Nagelmackers’ recent digital revamp.
