Why we need diversity before AI takes over
We hear a lot about how artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to displace jobs, especially those held by women in tech, but should we also worry about a future overrun with sexist, racist machines?
Industry Comment
Women in fintech: why do we need them and how do we recruit them?
Over the holiday period I saw my 17-year-old niece Katie reading an article in an engineering magazine about the lack of women in that industry. She is considering becoming an engineer.
Alexander Graham Bell’s influence on tech innovations in today’s financial services
“Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.” These were the first words ever spoken over a telephone line and said by the man fondly described as the father of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, who would have turned 170 on 3 March this year.
Blockchain offers banks potential, but HFT provides benefits now
I’ve been a technology nerd since before it was cool. In fact, when I went to college in the mid-1970s engineering students were treated more like George McFly than Mark Zuckerberg. It wasn’t the most glamorous major to talk about. Not much has changed today when I tell people I lead an advocacy organisation in support of high frequency trading (HFT), a technology that lowers trading costs for banks, asset managers and pretty much all investors. I find the work exciting, but I do run into my share of Biff Tannens.
Not so Hot as a Commodity: Processing Tech Must Do More for Prepaid
Differentiation with new prepaid use cases is critical as the industry consolidates and change in the wider payments world and consumer behavior accelerate. Exploiting opportunities in the prepaid market demands a modern processing technology that supports new product road maps and the ability to adapt quickly.
Disrupting Payments for the Better at Mobile World Congress
A deep dive into a packed panel discussion on disruption at the annual conference shows how payments providers are mapping the future with new technology, and how traditional players can endure.
What Will Happen to the CFPB?
Republicans have never liked the agency, but so far, their efforts to reform it and reduce its power—or eliminate it altogether—have appeared scattershot. Echoing what a former Secretary of Defense once said: Here’s what we know and what we know we don’t know about the bureau’s future.
How to Fight Fraudsters without Losing Legitimate Customers
An analysis of a real fraud situation shows that some barriers to fraud can potentially drive away valuable customers. Here’s what to do—and not to do—when criminals target your cards.
Will 2017 be the year financial services improve their UX?
2016 has been a big year for user experience (UX). The web, as a whole, became easier to use, apps became more intuitive, and services became a lot more engaging and purposeful. But could the same be said for financial services? Perhaps…
The big fight brewing over strong customer authentication
Late last year, Visa fired a volley – unlikely to be the last – over new rules that it and all providers of online transactions will soon need to follow as part of the EU’s revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2). It has some doom-laden predictions.
Culture in investment banks is a ticking time bomb for employers
Recently I have been recruiting for a senior analyst position. We have reviewed over 40 CVs for a senior analyst position, and only two have been from women.
Mobile: the banking industry’s biggest ultimatum
An app is no longer a “nice to have”. As consumers expect businesses to engage with them at the right time, in the right manner, and over the right channel, a bank’s mobile app will be a crucial first point of contact for many customers. But it’s important to remember that an app by itself is not some wonder-cure that will instantly give a financial organisation perfectly satisfied customers.
More than making nice: why payments execs are wooing merchants
The payments industry invitation to merchants to play a bigger role in innovation seems serious and pragmatic, writes our senior editor, an e-commerce expert.
How to Make a Multigenerational Global Impact with Prepaid
With the worldwide prepaid market set to hit $3.1 trillion by 2022, providers need to have a firm handle on who those prepaid consumers will be, and how they will shop.
It’s Time to Rethink Service Level Agreements
SLAs provide various metrics upon which service is judged. But in many cases, those metrics—and the business expectations of deals—prove unrealistic and could lead to poor decisions and wasted money.
Need for human connection in digital banking
Technology may rule the world, but human connection is still king.
How to make a success out of blockchain
There is pressure for CEOs to decide how distributed ledger technology (DLT) fits into their business strategy. Regulators also recognise that blockchain could advance their own processes. So what is all the excitement about? Blockchain is an exciting innovation but the technology has flaws…
Mobile money: the state of play
With mobile money technology widely available, and so many citizens having access to a mobile phone, how many are actually banking in this way? What are the benefits available to them when using mobile money? And what does the future hold for this fintech innovation?
Viewpoint: Why Better Payments Security Requires More Sharing
When payment systems come under attack, the broad retail and service economies suffer. That’s why legal concerns and information-sharing programs need to be reexamined.
The rise of in-app commerce
In-app payments are cannibalizing more traditional payments.
Viewpoint: What Openness Means for Payments, Fintech Future
With regulators opening up the payments infrastructure and consumers and business clients demanding á la carte but interoperable financial services from a variety of players, the industry and its would-be disruptors must adapt.
Modern payments and banking APIs
Modern banking is not limited to banks anymore. It’s not only about online or mobile banking, it’s about all the things you would do in your banking system, but now you can do in apps or other solutions provided by third parties, not banks. Payments are one of such functionalities.
Understanding the role of virtual card provider
Your organisation’s satisfaction with its virtual card provider is the single most important factor determining the return you will receive on your investment. So when you choose a supplier, set your expectations high.
Industry views: loyalty rewards – baby, please don’t go
Experts from Blackhawk, Cachet, Arroweye, i2c and more explain what loyalty strategies are moving the needle with consumers and why.
Viewpoint: What Can the Payments Industry Expect from Trump?
Even if President Trump puts the brakes on federal regulation of the payments industry, state regulators are poised to swerve into the open lane that creates.
Viewpoint: The Wider Appeal of Blockchain
The technology that underpins bitcoin has received increased attention in recent months from corporate heavyweights. Here’s how blockchain can further revolutionize payments and related industries.
Viewpoint: Cross-Border Payments Are Hot; Can You Handle the Heat?
Payments companies hoping to gain market share in the exploding cross-border payments market must be able to meet demands for security, customer service, low costs and simplicity.
Financial innovation – a lifeline for SME funding
Financial innovation is unlocking additional funding for small businesses that have been declined by their bank. Katrin Herrling, co-founder and CEO of Funding Xchange, explores.
Wearable technology in investment banking: watch your money on your watch
How can wearable technology be made popular in investment/wealth management services? We suggest a number of features that can create value and relevance to individual traders and wealth managers, if made available on smartwatch trading apps.
Viewpoint: 3 Holiday Trends that Will Shape Your Fraud Strategy in 2017
As you consider a New Year’s resolution to improve fraud prevention in 2017, remember that implementing fraud prevention at the platform level not only protects your merchants, but actually helps you enhance growth and protect margins and profitability.
Viewpoint: How Bitcoin Technology Could Make Travel Better
Blockchain, the foundation for digital currency transactions, shows the potential to create better passenger ID and cut down on fraud targeted at airline loyalty programs.
Three Implications Card Issuers Must Consider ahead of CFPB Prepaid Changes
Card issuers have only a few months to plan and implement the new CFPB rules. For card issuers looking to control costs and maintain more flexibility, now is the time to investigate on-demand card production and lean on the experts to ensure you meet the October 1, 2017 deadline.
Viewpoint: Prepaid’s Move to Help Canadian Businesses Break the Check Habit
All signs point to the rapid nationwide decline in check use being good for consumers, businesses and the financial system. Payments Canada forecasts that by 2020, virtually all checks written by businesses and governments in Canada will have migrated to electronic payments.
Putting trust in chatbots
Artificial intelligence (AI) interfaces and chatbots could be revolutionary for financial institutions – but only if they strike the right balance between human and machine interaction.
Are we heading for an identity crisis in fintech?
Establishing if someone is who they say they are in today’s virtual world is a major headache for banks and fintechs, thanks to the strict regulations they operate under and the difficulty in providing non-physical, verifiable forms of identity.
Top ten fintech opinion pieces in 2016
Look back at some of the most interesting and thought-provoking opinion pieces on all matters fintech published by Banking Technology in 2016.
US chip and PIN card roll-out – let’s shorten the time to process; where do I sign!
From a technology perspective, the family home has decided to rush headlong into the 21st century. When our home was built we thought we were being extremely progressive in having a Panasonic “4 lines, 10 extensions, PBX” installed with separate lines for my wife and myself and then a line for business and yes, one dedicated line for the fax machine. Cool… but fast forward a decade and a half and with the home up for sale, we were politely advised to take out all those handsets and close the door on the PBX.
Why the Uberisation of the banking industry can’t come soon enough
Building emotional bonds with customers is a strategic imperative, and why the change programmes currently being undertaken at banks need to recognise the hidden lessons of Uber.
Viewpoint: Frictionless Payments: Will They Become a Mirage?
Regulations requiring two-factor authentication could force the industry to move away from frictionless payments experiences like Uber and one-click checkout.
Viewpoint: Combating Fraud with Teamwork
The IRS reports that there’s been a nearly 50 percent drop in fraudulent returns, and there has been significant progress in stopping fraudulent returns before refunds are ever paid, due in part to new information provided by industry and state partners.
