What is Fintech?

Considering some definitions provided by Oxford English Dictionary (n.d.) and Shueffel (2016), Fintech is represented by a set of computer technologies that are to assist in and enable financial services to improve such aspects as customer service or data processing. Despite that some definitions presume its centrality to financial services, some highlight its external nature, as a variety of processes being added to existing infrastructure (for example, the addition of new technology like automated processes or machine learning). The term among the folk has started its rise in 2011, with some rare mentions to skyrocket starting from 2015, as many aspiring post-crisis startups and technologies began to receive prominence.

Common Features of Fintechs

Fintech organisations tend to have a variety of similar traits that are worth highlighting. 

1. Fintech businesses are “need-focused,” which means they unbundle financial services and rely on customisation to create personalised solutions.
2. They tend to expand the services of incumbents to previously ill-covered customer groups or create totally new forms of service.
3. Customers, as a result of their strategically central role in developing the businesses’ value propositions, are facing the blurring line between who makes products and services and who utilises them, since the creation of a platform frequently entails just bridging the network rather than fully separating each participant.
4. Quite often one of the premises is to take out third parties or additional steps of the process.
5. The need for expansion and fresh views on user experience/user interface are pushing forward the simplicity and “playfulness” of brand interactions.

Fintech Landscape

In its quest to capture the landscape of Fintech in Australia, KPMG (2020) divided Fintech among the following domains (plus a couple of other we considered essential):

Fintech Origins

In a study report published in 2015, Arner et al., (2015) attempted to evaluate the evolution of Fintech. “The term’s roots may be traced to the early 1990s and related to the ‘Financial Services Technology Consortium,’ an initiative started by Citigroup to assist technical collaboration efforts,” write Ibid. Indeed, the authors’ source, an article published by the media site American Banker, references a Citigroup initiative called “Fintech” that began in the early 1990s (Hochstein, 2015). The American Banker also released another story titled “Friday Flashback: Did Citi Coin the Term ‘Fintech’?” on the term Fintech. “[t]he story below published in American Banker in August 1993, and features the first use we could discover of the now-trendy phrase ‘Fintech’”, according to an editor’s note (Ibid). It references Fintech as a project label used by Citibank. This is the first paper cited by Hochstein (2015) and subsequently Arner et al. (2015) when claiming that the term Fintech originated in the early 1990s.

Despite this, the word Fintech was coined in 1972. Mr Abraham Bettinger, from Hanover Trust, provided the following definition in a scholarly article detailing models on how he had analysed and solved daily banking problems encountered at the bank (Oshodin et al., 2019): “Fintech is an acronym that stands for financial technology, combining bank expertise with modern management science techniques and the computer (Bettinger, 1972). Bettinger’s work was not wholly overlooked during his lifetime, as evidenced by an early reference of his work by Warschauer several years after (Oshodin et al., 2019). Even so, it’s possible that the Citibank Fintech project’s imitators in the early 1990s were unaware of Bettinger’s study and chose the same title for their initiative by chance. It is important noting at this time that neither academia nor practice can be definitively recognised as the birthplace of the word Fintech, given the phrase was coined by a practitioner in a scientific journal article.

History of Fintech

Yet, the development itself did not seem to start that late and could be associated with early 1950s, as the first stage of the transit from physical means of information exchange to digital among financial service providers. It could be linked to first attempts to create a credit card by Diners Club International (n.d.), or progress on Federal Reserve Wire System. According to Nelson (2018), in late June 1967, Barclays installed the first ATM. Though quite coarse when it comes to functionalities, such as a limit of £10 or frequent bugs, it has marked a huge leap forward as it lifted long queues and expanded the service opening time.

Later, the 1970s showcased some other major shifts such as the FINRA-led creation of Nasdaq, which could partly be regarded as the first digital exchange. Though, it needed years to shift from the over-the-counter nature and meaningfully automate reporting and trading (Widder, 1992). One would also mention the creation of SWIFT, i.e. the framework for international bank communication. Its exchange software and messaging standards created a fertile ground for automated and unimpeded interaction between thousands of institutions (SWIFT, n.d.).

Then, the process gained momentum: the 1980s opened the stage for online banking (yet only partial); the 1990s popularised e-commerce and introduced more participants to this movement. Though the biggest impact was brought by the global shake-up, as old institutional arrangements have not only led the world economy to turmoil but also gave birth to a massive distrust in the system by people. As a result, ideas for alternatives were welcomed, ranging from less conventional ways to improve the legacy systems (i.e. make them more transparent or reduce transaction costs) to totally new ways of thinking (like that proposed by blockchain). As some of these endeavours have proved utterly successful, more attention has been paid to corresponding ventures in the following years. Though, it is not yet known whether this phenomenon will peak and fade any time soon, or whether any single set of arrangements will displace the other.

Fintech-related Terms

Thanks to some research provided by Deloitte (n.d.) and CFTE’s older publications, here one could find a list of some of the most common terms associated with Fintech, and thus be able to expand their knowledge.

Fintech Examples

1. Lufax

Once focused on P2P lending, Lufax is a technology-driven online Internet financial marketplace that provides retail credit and wealth management services. 

2. Tinkoff

Made as an experiment for the Russian market, Tinkoff is the region’s digital banking champion, highlighting openness and big data solutions.

3. Brex

Brex, a shining example of a Silicon Valley unicorn, fills a developing vacuum in banking ambitious tech startups, assisting them with cash management and credit needs.

Fintech Regulation

The centricity of technology has provided massive regulatory advantages, as many entities to challenge the traditional incumbents were not subject to regulatory scrutiny. However, as they were increasingly becoming full-fledged players in the industry, be them independent organisations or vassals of larger traditional banking institutions, they are now getting exposed to existing regulation or supplied with the new one.

The major driver of this attention, however, is the state’s sensitivity to potential contagion effects, as consumer bases of the former are growing remarkably. Special attention is currently paid to blockchain-related phenomena, as state representatives and major institutions behind are utterly uncomfortable with potential economic shocks, Ponzi schemes, loss of central power and transaction transparency/irreversibility.

Fintech Largest Centres

fintech startupsrobo advisorsbuy or selltraditional bankingstock trading app

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Day 1

We hit the ground running on the first day! Tram Anh chaired an entire suite of sessions about AI in Finance under the theme of Transformational Technology, where several business cases for disruptive technologies in financial services were analysed and explored.

She also acted as the moderator for an engaging panel discussion titled “AI: Are We Using It Right?”, with participants including Mark Ma (Machine Learning Engineer – SAP), Dror Oren (Chief Product Officer & Co-Founder – Kasisto), Elena Alfaro (Head of Data & Open Innovation, Client Solutions – BBVA) and Devika Daga (Director of Global Partnerships & Operations – Element, Inc.) 

The key takeaway from this panel session can be best summed up in a quote from Tram Anh – “The first ones to be confused – or worried – are certainly those working in financial services.”

Another important note highlighted by Daga is the fact that AI must be trained and that it will take plenty of time, with Oren also pointing out that executives must think of what’s next tomorrow, in addition to aligning departments and optimising quickly when implementing the technology.

Later in the day, Janos’ session involved a panel discussion about successful and unsuccessful approaches to internal innovation, with Dr. Amy Neale (Vice President, Mastercard Start Path – Mastercard), Nicolas Kozakiewicz (Chief Innovation Officer – Worldline), Grzegorz Pawlicki (Head of Innovation – PKO Bank Polski) and Wincie Wong (Head of Innovation for Supply Chain Services – NatWest).

Thanks to an interesting discussion, panellists highlighted the importance of bringing diversity to thinking, keeping an open mind when exploring change within a Fintech ecosystem, and making sure products have a clear growth path when integrating them into business.

Away from the panels, we were also present for other interesting sessions at the event:

• Tram Anh announced this year’s AI in Finance Awards, a once in a lifetime opportunity for finance professionals and entrepreneurs, and potential applicants can apply here!
• CFTE contributing expert Anne Boden (Founder and CEO – Starling Bank) launched her new book “The Money Revolution” – we wish her nothing but congratulations and continued success!
• Rob Frohwein, the CEO and co-founder of Kabbage, offered advice to all entrepreneurs, urging them to understand “where your business comes from and where it is going”, while also encouraging the audience to embrace digital

Day 2

CFTE contributing experts Claire Calmejane (Chief Innovation Officer – Societe Generale) and Boden were in action at a panel discussion we caught in the morning, talking about the opportunities and challenges of banking in 2019.

It was also a busy day for Huy, first with the announcement of the “Top 50 Fintech (2014) Report: What They Have Become”, which can be downloaded here, as well as moderating a panel discussion between Nordic banks about “Tech Roadmaps in Banking” with Ville Sointu (Head of Emerging Technologies – Nordea), David Grundy (Group Head of Blockchain/DLT – Danske Bank) and Lasse Meholm (Head of Blockchain & DLT Strategy – DNB Bank).

The key takeaway from the panel session was the topic of collaboration, with Grundy emphasising that although “it’s a race to be first”, at the end of the day “technology requires collaboration” as it cannot be done alone.  

We also managed to set some time aside to catch up with Clare Joy of Onfido, regarding the upcoming event “AI in FINANCE, REGULATION and SKILLS” organised by French Tech London. Taking place on June 18, 2019 in London, this special event will see our co-founders Tram Anh and Huy take part as speakers and panellists.

Day 3

Tram Anh’s first panel session of the day was part of the Rise Up program, where she was a speaker on the topic of “Empowering Women in Leadership”. Practical ways to break the glass ceiling were discussed with Kate Adamson (Head of Mortgage – Plaid), Smriti Vicari (Head of Fintech Europe – Visa) and Sophie Jackson (Joint Publisher & Head of Strategic Content – Treasury Today Group).

The key message that Tram Anh shared was for women to seek opportunities through learning about digital finance and essential learning AI as part of enriching their skill sets. She encouraged women to take control of their path, saying that “Being a leader of the future is allowing yourself to be different, you have to adapt faster than anyone else.”

She also managed to fit another panel into her busy schedule, this time chairing a discussion by EWPN on the topic of “How AI Can Promote Gender Equality in the Financial Industry”, and was joined by Beatrice Bouju (Executive Board Member – European Women Payments Network (EWPN)) as moderator, and Shafique R Ibrahim (Group IT Head – Payment – AI Fardan Group) and Miriam Ballesteros (Head of Communications – Strands) as panellists.

Topping off her busy day, Tram Anh encouraged everyone to upskill themselves, seeking and gaining knowledge to take advantage of the burgeoning finance industry ripe with opportunity.

“The world is changing. We’re moving into an AI world and the industry that invests most in AI is financial services. It’s not hyped, it’s really happening. And we need to ensure everyone involved understands AI and no one is left behind” – Tram Anh Nguyen

Janos also had a productive day when he announced the relaunch of the successful CFTEx programme. More details will follow in due course, but it was exciting to see the reemergence of a programme which was well-received by the first cohort of participants!

We also managed to catch CFTE Academic Advisory Board Member, Ronit Ghose (Global Head of Banks Research – Citi), in action. He gave a rousing speech about building a strategy from scratch, which was well-received as evidenced by the healthy crowd in attendance!

It proved to be a wonderful three days in the presence of some of the finest and brightest minds in finance today. We intend to take what we’ve learnt and shared with the world and continue to build the Finance 2.0 community, especially with our next Extrapreneurship programme set to launch in August. It promises to be nothing short of exciting!

We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the team at Money20/20 for putting on such an amazing, engaging and memorable event. We certainly enjoyed our time in Amsterdam and hope to be back for the next edition. If what we saw is anything to go by, the future of finance is very, very bright indeed.

CFTE is the learning and innovation platform for individuals and organisations to act on the transformation of Finance. Learn how to get into Fintech, explore the exciting opportunities at Fintech startups, lead AI projects and develop your career.

CFTE develops leading online courses (Comparable to Harvard Fintech Course, Oxford Fintech programme and MIT Fintech certificate course), Experiential Learning Programmes such as Entrepreneur workshops and also animate a community of 1000 of alumni and experts.

Start with the foundations with our Fintech Foundations Programme and AI in Finance course.

Think and act like an Entrepreneur with our Extrapreneurship Programme.

Meet and get inspired at our Fintech ecosystem

About CFTE

We are a platform supported by senior leaders from the largest institutions, startups, and universities. We address the needs of professionals in finance to upskill in a rapidly changing industry being transformed by emerging technologies. More than 50,000 participants learn from our online courses, such as AI in Finance, Fintech Foundation or Extrapreneurship, a mini-MBA with fast-growing startups such as Revolut or Shift Technology.

Latest posts

• Extrapreneurship – The Future of Entrepreneurship in Fintech
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Settlement
• What is eXtrapreneurship?
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Processing
• Will AI Take My Job?

Next Events[MEC id=”3937″]

The post CFTE at Money20/20 Europe appeared first on CFTE.

The short answer is yes. FinTech is impacting every single vertical and divisions in the finance industry. Be it investment banking, capital markets, compliance or sales, no one is immune from this pending disruption. Last year, FinTech accounted for 33% of revenue in financial services according to Accenture, and it’s a safe bet to assume that this figure will continue to increase year-on-year.

It’s Important to Know How It Works

The idea of FinTech or AI in finance is to make life easier, both for people within the industry as well as customers. However, there’s currently a big gap in the market for individuals with the right skills needed for FinTech. As the technology automates the tedious jobs, the high-level execution such as strategic planning is left to humans. Without the right qualifications and understanding of FinTech and AI, it will soon become impossible to remain relevant.

For example, AI can be used to report and analyse huge amounts of data collected. However, it will be left to humans to interpret the data or determine what it is used for. Without understanding FinTech, this data cannot be utilised properly. This is just one example of how it is imperative to understand the technology to be able to execute accordingly.

Many Jobs Will Be Created

Global FinTech investment hit a record US$111.8 bil in 2018. It’s no surprise that recruitment is going to use up much of these funds. Jobs in FinTech startups are going to increase exponentially and these roles are likely to be given to those with the best FinTech qualifications. Without a solid FinTech education, you’re likely to be trailing the pack.

Banks and many other financial institutions are already looking to upskill their employees via various online FinTech courses to prepare for the future. If industry stalwarts are already getting ready for the FinTech revolution, why shouldn’t you?

The FinTech Foundation Course by CFTE is designed to help build your Fintech knowledge in just 8 hours with the help of leading academics and industry leaders, and boasts a community of thousands of alumni and experts.

Click the button below to learn more about the course.

CFTE is the learning and innovation platform for individuals and organisations to act on the transformation of Finance. Learn how to get into Fintech, explore the exciting opportunities at Fintech startups, lead AI projects and develop your career.

CFTE develops leading online courses (Comparable to Harvard Fintech Course, Oxford Fintech programme and MIT Fintech certificate course), Experiential Learning Programmes such as Entrepreneur workshops and also animate a community of 1000 of alumni and experts.

Start with the foundations with our Fintech Foundations Programme and AI in Finance course.

Think and act like an Entrepreneur with our Extrapreneurship Programme.

Meet and get inspired at our Fintech ecosystem

About CFTE

We are a platform supported by senior leaders from the largest institutions, startups, and universities. We address the needs of professionals in finance to upskill in a rapidly changing industry being transformed by emerging technologies. More than 50,000 participants learn from our online courses, such as AI in Finance, Fintech Foundation or Extrapreneurship, a mini-MBA with fast-growing startups such as Revolut or Shift Technology.

Latest posts

• Extrapreneurship – The Future of Entrepreneurship in Fintech
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Settlement
• What is eXtrapreneurship?
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Processing
• Will AI Take My Job?

Next Events[MEC id=”3937″]

The post Is Upskilling Vital to Stay Relevant in the Finance Industry? appeared first on CFTE.

For current and future bankers, or anyone with an interest in the finance industry, the landscape is changing fast. The characteristics of an entrepreneur are becoming more relevant than ever in this field. Not everyone needs to be an entrepreneur, but everyone needs to have an entrepreneurial mindset.

This is essential whether you run your own business or innovate in a large organisation. Apart from streamlining processes, the entrepreneurial mindset can help your career progression. In short, this is the vision to strategise and execute in a faster, smarter and more flexible way. Instead of being tied down by protocol and best practices, vision often changes things for the better.

For example, adopting an entrepreneurial mindset means bankers may need to adjust their default mindset. Most will have experience of rigid processes that have not changed for decades, and will not see any reason to change. This can lead to complacency, which results in a lack of change or innovation – typical of many banks in today’s world. There needs to be an urgency to improve and experiment with new ideas. In turn, it will quickly isolate successful processes and tangible improvements while also highlighting inefficiencies.

Similarly, creativity and problem-solving are key skills that bankers will need to thrive as an entrepreneur. Although many organisations keep an eye for CVs that describe “out-of-the-box” thinkers, they often prefer individuals that they can mould to think and take their approach to dealing with problems. When it comes to innovation, limiting thinking and possibilities to a single funnel is a recipe for disaster.

We fully believe that bankers (or anyone for that matter!) can learn how to have an entrepreneurial mindset, and the CFTE Extrapreneurship Programme has been created to respond to this need. The programme allows professionals to experience entrepreneurship by working on a strategic issue of high growth startups (inaugural edition starting on 13 May 2019 with Revolut and Shift Technology).

To read more of our leading new Extrapreneurship programme, please click on the button below!

CFTE is the learning and innovation platform for individuals and organisations to act on the transformation of Finance. Learn how to get into Fintech, explore the exciting opportunities at Fintech startups, lead AI projects and develop your career.

CFTE develops leading online courses (Comparable to Harvard Fintech Course, Oxford Fintech programme and MIT Fintech certificate course), Experiential Learning Programmes such as Entrepreneur workshops and also animate a community of 1000 of alumni and experts.

Start with the foundations with our Fintech Foundations Programme and AI in Finance course.

Think and act like an Entrepreneur with our Extrapreneurship Programme.

Meet and get inspired at our Fintech ecosystem

About CFTE

We are a platform supported by senior leaders from the largest institutions, startups, and universities. We address the needs of professionals in finance to upskill in a rapidly changing industry being transformed by emerging technologies. More than 50,000 participants learn from our online courses, such as AI in Finance, Fintech Foundation or Extrapreneurship, a mini-MBA with fast-growing startups such as Revolut or Shift Technology.

Latest posts

• Extrapreneurship – The Future of Entrepreneurship in Fintech
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Settlement
• What is eXtrapreneurship?
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Processing
• Will AI Take My Job?

Next Events[MEC id=”3937″]

The post Can a Banker be an Entrepreneur? appeared first on CFTE.

With the world of finance rapidly changing and evolving, executives in the industry run the risk of being left behind as the brave new world of FinTech begins to take root. The CFTE Campus aims to upskill professionals to keep up with the times, regardless of current experience and expertise. Not only will this ensure they remain relevant in the future of finance, it will also benefit the FinTech community as the talent pool grows and develops along with the industry.

Apart from promoting FinTech education one of the key aims of the CFTE Campus is to grow the London FinTech ecosystem. Experts in various fields will share their insight and views at biweekly FinTech events held at Level39, making it the most vibrant community in Europe, and possibly the world!

This is a notion echoed by CFTE co-founder, Tram Anh Nguyen, who wants the campus to help finance professionals to “upskill themselves and also build a network with other FinTech leaders of today and tomorrow”. With its strategic location at Level39, the CFTE Campus is certainly well-placed to do just that.

Hosting over 200 startups and more than 1,200 entrepreneurs, Level39 is the perfect ecosystem for FinTech to rapidly develop and thrive, with its community having a golden opportunity to accelerate not only their learning, but impact on the world of finance. The London FinTech scene stands to benefit tremendously as the foundation has already been laid previously, paving the way for speedy growth and evolution that few cities around the world, if any, can match.

There is already a myriad of opportunities in FinTech in London; the introduction of the CFTE Campus only serves to increase this number. The only question is, will you be a part of it?

We’re in the news! Click here to read more!

Click here to read the full press release of the CFTE Campus launch.

CFTE is the learning and innovation platform for individuals and organisations to act on the transformation of Finance. Learn how to get into Fintech, explore the exciting opportunities at Fintech startups, lead AI projects and develop your career.

CFTE develops leading online courses (Comparable to Harvard Fintech Course, Oxford Fintech programme and MIT Fintech certificate course), Experiential Learning Programmes such as Entrepreneur workshops and also animate a community of 1000 of alumni and experts.

Start with the foundations with our Fintech Foundations Programme and AI in Finance course.

Think and act like an Entrepreneur with our Extrapreneurship Programme.

Meet and get inspired at our Fintech ecosystem

Browse our Fintech Events Agenda.

About CFTE

We are a platform supported by senior leaders from the largest institutions, startups, and universities. We address the needs of professionals in finance to upskill in a rapidly changing industry being transformed by emerging technologies. More than 50,000 participants learn from our online courses, such as AI in Finance, Fintech Foundation or Extrapreneurship, a mini-MBA with fast-growing startups such as Revolut or Shift Technology.

Latest posts

• Extrapreneurship – The Future of Entrepreneurship in Fintech
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Settlement
• What is eXtrapreneurship?
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Processing
• Will AI Take My Job?

Next Events[MEC id=”3937″]

The post CFTE Campus – The First Physical FinTech Campus appeared first on CFTE.

A background in finance

Although this is not strictly true, it certainly helps to have a good understanding of how the industry works to lay the foundation for a future career in FinTech. Working directly in the field will give you a thorough idea of what the shortcomings and problems are within the various verticals.

Marketing

As any entrepreneur will tell you, marketing is half the battle. A common mistake startup founders often make is assuming that the audience will see and recognise the worth of their product. Marketing helps to break down what your product/service is to the masses, which in turn can drive plenty of potential leads to your FinTech startup. If you are not sure how best to position your offerings, you need to find someone that does!

Business development

This is the other half of the hustle for the FinTech entrepreneur. As a startup, you will be pressed for business from the get-go and it is up to you to find these leads and channels and convert them to scale quickly. If your services are better than your competitors, you need to make sure that interested parties know this and close the deal quickly. If your leads are locked into long multi-year contracts with rivals, you will not be securing their business anytime soon, no matter how good your product is.

Soft skills

This is something that can be hard to demonstrate on a resume, but necessary skills such as emotional intelligence, creativity and agile thinking can prove to be priceless when building up a FinTech startup. Imagine a leader with every technical skill in the book but is unable to effectively communicate with the team – a disaster waiting to happen! Similarly, the inability to solve problems on the fly and adapt to the rapid changes within the FinTech industry is a sure-fire recipe for failure.

No one can create a FinTech unicorn on their own; soft skills are essential when establishing FinTech startups from the ground up, before scaling when the service is proven. In addition, soft skills can be key to securing funding from angels and other investors. After all, no one wants to invest in a founder that they dislike.

Innovations and problem-solving

As an entrepreneur, you will constantly have to come up with creative methods to solve problems that never seem to go away. Thinking outside the box is paramount, and you will likely find yourself at a roadblock if your problem-solving skills have not been sufficiently developed. Alternatively, you may find your skills developing at a faster rate than ever before if you dive right into the deep end!

The CFTE Extrapreneurship Programme has been created to respond to this need. The programme allows professionals to experience entrepreneurship by working on a strategic issue of high growth startups  (inaugural edition starting on 13 May 2019 with Revolut and Shift Technology – applications currently open).

To read more of our leading new Extrapreneurship programme click here!

About CFTE

We are a platform supported by senior leaders from the largest institutions, startups, and universities. We address the needs of professionals in finance to upskill in a rapidly changing industry being transformed by emerging technologies. More than 50,000 participants learn from our online courses, such as AI in Finance, Fintech Foundation or Extrapreneurship, a mini-MBA with fast-growing startups such as Revolut or Shift Technology.

Latest posts

• Extrapreneurship – The Future of Entrepreneurship in Fintech
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Settlement
• What is eXtrapreneurship?
• How AI is Being Used at Investment Banks – Trade Processing
• Will AI Take My Job?

Next Events[MEC id=”3937″]

The post What skills are needed to be a FinTech Entrepreneur? appeared first on CFTE.