This week in our Fast 5 series we’re discussing the technologies available to banks and building societies across the UK. Joe Roche, Engagement Manager at FinTech North, explores the opportunities with Open Banking and the biggest challenges in the digital banking industry.
The impact of Open Banking; it will be really interesting to see what comes out on top – optimisation of the best rate vs brand loyalty and trust. More organisations are embracing Open Banking and there were 109 firms with live-to-market open banking-enabled products and services in 2020.
The main benefits as I see them include the optimisation of best rates; technology such as Open Banking enabling customers to utilise the best rates to maximise their savings. Also, FinTech has trigger a massive shift forwards in User experience, giving customers more visibility, more control and a better experience.
Two things are really prominent in my mind; user experience and customer centricity. FinTech has brought this to the party so to speak – the ability to access your accounts and financial services instantly and easily. Increasing competitors including digital only banks offer hyper-relevant digital experiences and established financial organisations need to keep pace to maintain competitive advantage.
There’s a recurring theme here; I see the potential of Open Banking to combine with more sophisticated AI and Machine Learning – we could be in a position where accounts will autonomously switch to find the best rates for their users.
FinTech is booming right across the world, not least here in the UK, where we are seen globally as a world leader in FinTech. Singapore and Toronto are two international ecosystems I always come across. Additionally, Atlanta is a payments hotspot, with 70% of US payments going through the city. But I’d probably say China – China leads the way when it comes to cashless societies and digital payments.
Joe is currently the Engagement Manager at FinTech North, a not-for-profit event management company bringing together the Northern FinTech ecosystems with events and conferences. In addition to managing events and developing strategic partnerships, Joe regularly speaks at financial Fintech events across the UK. Joe is also a contributing writer for The State of the Arts magazine, a website covering arts, culture, and politics from cities across England, and occasionally further afield. On a weekend you’ll find him working on his golf handicap.
