Fintech News Issue #46 December 15th, 2015

The advantage of FinTechs is that they can usually respond to customer feedback and pivot quickly. They are considered more agile than big banks. But that doesn’t mean all innovation is happening outside the banks.

[german only] Wir haben heute einen besonderen Gast – Anno Lederer, Senior Partner der Saaman AG. Zuvor lange Jahre (bis Juni 2014) GF der GAD (37 Jahre im Verbund), dem RZ der Volks- und Raiffeisenbanken.

The much hyped ‘digital disruption’ in the UK banking sector appears to be a non-event for the majority of consumers, who remain steadfastly unimpressed by noisy new entrants and new-fangled tech.

We talked to Michael Mellinghoff, Managing Director at TechFluence. Being a longtime banking professional with several years of experience with FinTech startups, we asked him about some of the key questions in the industry at the moment.

Since 2005 I’ve been predicting the decline of branch banking. For almost 10 years I fought bankers who decried my assessment that branches would cease to be the most important channel in banking, to be replaced by far more efficient mechanisms for revenue generation and relationship.

Another key development of 2015 has been the open sourcing of bank services. I’ve talked for a while now about Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) – first blog entry almost seven years ago – and this forecast that anyone in the near future would be able to build their own bank through apps, APIs and analytics.

Fintech Innovators, a collaboration between fintech investment firm, H2 Ventures and KPMG Fintech, today announced the world’s leading fintech innovators, publishing its Fintech 100 list.

Chris Skinner shares a simple summary of what blockchain and bitcoin are all about, and his thoughts about the apparent unveiling of Satoshi Nakamoto.

Three challenges stand in the way of banks and credit unions seeking to differentiate themselves in an increasingly competitive marketplace. To succeed with product, channel and customer experience innovation, these barriers must be addressed quickly.

The financial services industry is in a flux right now; nobody has a clear-cut five-year strategy. I love this state of constant chaos and disruption as it will make us stronger as an industry in the long run. It will test the companies to the core and will jettison the waste.

MPD CEO Karen Webster spoke with Clark Khayat, executive vice president of KeyBank, and group head of commercial payments, and Ken Gavrity, who heads product and innovation for enterprise commercial payment at KeyBank, about the best ways to onboard innovation in all of its forms.

Over the past few years, data breaches have increased in frequency and size, making the need to protect sensitive information a top priority for businesses worldwide.

It may be easier and more fun to launch new initiatives, but going back to critically assess and adjust existing programs can be more rewarding, cost effective and ultimately more profitable than rolling out new ones.