Banking – Page 2 – Impact Lab

Banking, Latest Trend, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

The invisible company powers almost the entire finance industry

November 21, 2019

The days of going to a bank are coming to an end.

In the past 10 years, 15,000 bank branches have shut their doors for good. And foot traffic to banks has fallen by 50%. Bank branches are shutting down left and right for a simple reason… They’re useless!

These days, you can deposit a check by taking a photo with your phone. You can open a bank account or order a new credit card in five minutes over the internet. You can even take out a mortgage without ever seeing a human banker, thanks to disruptive services like Quicken Loans.

And it’s not just banks. Digital disruption is eating away at every “old” business model in finance. Everyone from stockbrokers to financial planners is under assault.

Continue reading… “The invisible company powers almost the entire finance industry”

Banking, Google, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Google to offer checking accounts in partnership with banks starting next year

November 21, 2019

Google is the latest big tech company to make a move into banking and personal financial services: The company is gearing up to offer checking accounts to consumers, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal, starting as early as next year. Google is calling the project “Cache,” and it’ll partner with banks and credit unions to offer the checking accounts, with the banks handling all financial and compliance activities related to the accounts.

Google’s Caesar Sengupta spoke to the WSJ about the new initiative, and Sengupta made clear that Google will be seeking to put its financial institution partners much more front-and-center for its customers than other tech companies have perhaps done with their financial products. Apple works with Goldman Sachs on its Apple Card credit product, for instance, but the credit card is definitely presented primarily as an Apple product.

Continue reading… “Google to offer checking accounts in partnership with banks starting next year”

2020 Predictions, Artificial Intelligence, Banking, Science & Technology News

The 7 biggest technology trends to disrupt banking & financial services in 2020

November 17, 2019

Even though banking and financial services have been slower than other industries to adopt the latest technology into their operations, financial organizations are trying to catch up by incorporating artificial intelligence, blockchain, and other technology to benefit their customers, remain competitive and improve business results. Here are the 7 biggest technology trends that will disrupt banking and financial services in 2020.

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Banking, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

“The Deadly Trifecta” is among threats putting $88 billion in banks’ payments revenue at risk

November 8, 2019

While fintechs and other nonbank payments providers continue to carve out more market share for themselves, banks could face losing up to $88 billion in payments revenue to them. That’s the assessment from Accenture, the consulting firm that on Wednesday released its latest report, “5 Big Bets in Retail Payments in North America.”

Of that $88 billion, $82 billion is attributable to U.S. banks and $6 billion to Canadian institutions.

Payments revenue among U.S. and Canadian banks is slowing. According to Accenture, retail-payments revenue will likely grow at a compound annual rate of 4% over the next six years, going from $322 billion in 2019 to $405 billion in 2025. To ensure getting a share of that growth, banks and other payment-industry incumbents need to shift strategies, Accenture says.

Continue reading… ““The Deadly Trifecta” is among threats putting $88 billion in banks’ payments revenue at risk”

Banking, Business, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Venmo to launch its first credit card in 2020

October 27, 2019

Venmo announced today its plans to launch its first-ever credit card. The card is being issued in partnership with Synchrony, already the issuer behind Venmo parent company PayPal’s Extras Mastercard and Cashback Mastercard. The move is meant to help Venmo, a still unprofitable arm of PayPal’s larger business, generate more revenue.

PayPal’s plans in this space were reported in April of this year by The WSJ, which said the company had been taking meetings with various banks since late 2018 to discuss a Venmo-branded credit card. The report said PayPal was then close to selecting Synchrony as its issuer and would likely announce the card sometime later in 2019, as it now has.

Continue reading… “Venmo to launch its first credit card in 2020”

Banking, Bitcoin, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Should central banks issue digital currency? Suddenly, it’s an urgent question.

October 9, 2019

Stable digital currencies—and particularly Facebook’s plans to launch one—have central bankers playing defense.

For years, powerful central banks around the world have claimed to be studying digital currencies, and most have left open the possibility that one day they might launch their own. That day may be dawning—much earlier than anyone expected.

In a recent blog post, IMF economists Tobias Adrian and Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli called on policymakers to take “prompt regulatory action” to address the “notable risks” posed by privately issued digital currencies, called stablecoins, that are designed to maintain a consistent value. More to the point: central banks may need to get into the stablecoin business themselves.

Continue reading… “Should central banks issue digital currency? Suddenly, it’s an urgent question.”

Automation, Banking, Robots, Science & Technology News

Robots to replace 200,000 US jobs in banking in 10 years

October 7, 2019

As the September jobs report looms, a recent report from Wells Fargo is casting a bleak light on the future of banking jobs.

The report revealed that robots are likely to reduce headcount by 200,000 over the next decade throughout the financial industry in the U.S. Wells Fargo’s Mike Mayo spoke to Yahoo Finance’s On The Move this week and said banks will be investing significantly in technology over the next 10 years.

“The next decade should be the biggest decade for banks in technology in history. You’re about to see the biggest capital for labor swap in history,” Mayo said.

Continue reading… “Robots to replace 200,000 US jobs in banking in 10 years”

Banking, Money Talk, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News

The $100 trillion opportunity: The race to provide banking to the world’s poor

September 29, 2019

Two years ago, Amylene Dingle lived with her husband and 7-year-old daughter in Payatas, an impoverished Manila neighborhood with the largest open dump site in the Philippines. Her husband worked on the security staff in a government building, earning 4,000 pesos a week, the equivalent of $80. She had always wanted to start a business, but she was unemployed, had no money saved, no credit history and couldn’t get a credit card or a bank loan.

Dingle’s fortunes took a dramatic turn after she responded to a Facebook ad for Tala, a Santa Monica-based startup that makes small loans through a smartphone app. After granting Tala access to her phone, through which the app cleverly parses mobile data to assess a borrower’s risk, she got a 30-day, $20 loan. She paid 15% interest and used the money to buy cold cuts, hamburgers and hot dogs. She marked them up 40% and sold them door-to-door, earning $4 in profit after paying back the interest and a small processing fee.

Continue reading… “The $100 trillion opportunity: The race to provide banking to the world’s poor”

Banking, Employment, Future, Science & Technology News

6 futuristic jobs that will soon exist in the financial industry

September 12, 2019

I’d like to apply for the job of man-machine team manager, please

It used to be that a job in finance would set you up for life. Steady, reliable, dependable, calculators and sweater vests. These things come to mind when you think of a career in finance.

Just like in other industries, AI and machine learning are entering the scene and causing great disruption in what used to be one of the most stable career choices. In the US, one report found that 1.3 million bank workers will lose their jobs or be reassigned due to automation. Globally, finance leaders are predicting that 50% of jobs could be lost.

As these technologies develop, which jobs will become obsolete? Will a robot be doing my taxes in the future? At the same time, what new opportunities are on the horizon?

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Banking, Bitcoin, Business, facebook, Science & Technology News

Mark Zuckerberg is about to become the head of a Swiss Bank. 3 reasons it should make you think

July 1, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg is about to become the head of a very big bank based in Switzerland. Libra is Facebooks’ new cryptocurrency. Imagine sitting in a room thinking about what else you can sell to your 2.4bn people (including some bots) backed by a $1bn in guarantees from companies as wide as Paypal, Mastercard and Uber. This has the opportunity to severely disrupt existing financial transactions markets but also the deeper psychology of trust of our collective financial systems, collective expectations for what currency can and should do and also our personal relationships. For example, please pay me to socially post positive things about you. Just drop me some Libra.

Continue reading… “Mark Zuckerberg is about to become the head of a Swiss Bank. 3 reasons it should make you think”

AI, Artificial Intelligence, Banking, Science & Technology News

How Artificial Intelligence is already disrupting financial services

May 29, 2019

Digital technologies drive business disruption. Today, artificial intelligence (AI) is at the forefront of financial industry disruption, allowing these firms to look differently at operations, staffing, processes, and the way work is done in a human-machine partnership. In PwC’s 2019 AI survey of US executives, financial services executives said they expect their AI efforts to result in increased revenue and profits (50%), better customer experiences (48%), and innovative new products (42%).

AI encompasses an array of technologies, from fully automated or autonomous intelligence to assisted or augmented intelligence. Financial firms are already deploying some relatively simple AI tools, such as intelligent process automation (IPA), which handles non-routine tasks and processes that require judgment and problem-solving to free employees to work on more valuable jobs. Banks have been using AI to redesign their fraud detection and anti-money laundering efforts for a while, and investment firms are starting to use AI to execute trades, manage portfolios, and provide personalized service to their clients. Insurance organizations, in turn, have been turning to AI—and especially machine learning (ML)—to enhance products, pricing, and underwriting; strengthen the claims process; predict and prevent fraud; and improve customer service and billing.

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Analysis, Banking, Bitcoin, Blockchain, Science & Technology News

Fiat vs Cryptocurrency: Pros and Cons

May 6, 2019

While some early adapters may not need convincing to join the cryptocurrency craze, others are left wondering, what exactly is it good for? I can’t put it in my bank, I can’t use it at (most) stores, what can I do with cryptocurrencies? Before we get into the ins and outs of cryptocurrency and how it can be used, first let’s look at some of the similarities and differences between fiat and cryptocurrency.

Continue reading… “Fiat vs Cryptocurrency: Pros and Cons”