Fintech Insider By 11:fs

In this episode FinTech isn’t disrupting the financial industry in Africa – it’s building it across the continent. And because it’s being building without much legacy, by default it’s digital as a platform. In this episode of FinTech Insider Insights, we’ll shine a light on some great FinTech stories coming out of Africa, including approaches and ideas that incumbent institutions will find incredibly useful. Our guests Gerhard Coetzee, Lead Financial Sector Specialist at CGAP Lesley-Ann Vaughan, M-PESA Co-Creator Ron Webb, Director of Financial Services at Safaricom Brett Loubser, CEO at WeChat Africa “I’m extremely excited by how we’re going to see an increasing daily relevance of payments in people’s lives,” Ron says. “P2P transactions have been hugely important, and have been the bedrock of what M-PESA became. But you only send money P2P to your relatives, or people that you’re supporting, on a periodic basis. But you do merchant payments every single day – and many of them – and the increasing use

In this episode Is PSD2 an opportunity or a headache for banks? FinTech Insider News guest Ben Robinson says we’re still underestimating the magnitude of what the regulators are asking banks to do, “which is basically to put their inventory online. Asking banks to give up their transactional data is like asking Google to give up its metadata.  You can see why banks wouldn’t want to.” Also in the news, Monzo’s crowdfunding (and outage); our new favorite rap song; and Orange is the new bank. Guests Christopher Burniske, Blockchain Products Lead at ARK INVEST Ben Robinson, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer at Temenos News this week Finextra – EBA to relax controversial PSD2 authentication rules – Link  Finextra – Brits warm to mobile tap and pay – Link Finextra – Singapore commuters can now tap-and-pay for their fares with Mastercard – Link JP Morgan, Intel, Microsoft join Ethereum Blockchain Alliance Link 11FS – 11 things your CIO needs to know about blockchain today – Link  FT – Top ba

In this episode Blythe Masters spent 27 years at JP Morgan in a variety of roles, including running the global commodities business, working in structured credit and fixed income markets, and serving as CFO of JP Morgan’s global investment bank. After leaving in 2014, she planned on taking a year off, but then blockchain caught her eye and she joined Digital Asset, where she’s CEO. In this interview, Blythe describes their technology as blockchain-inspired, explains what this means, and shares what Digital Asset is working on. “This is a once in a generation opportunity to fundamentally change the way the financial market infrastructure works,” Blythe says, “and that is for the greater good of everybody.” Like this episode? Please tell a friend about FinTech Insider, and leave us a review on iTunes. This helps people discover us. The post Ep220 – Blythe Masters on Blockchain’s Once in a Generation Opportunity appeared first on 11:FS.

In this episode When it comes to innovation, can big, established banks compete with agile startups? Culture is the major barrier to digital transformation for larger organizations, so we talked to execs at the Global CIO Banking Summit to get their insight. Stay tuned for actionable examples on how to change your culture, how to measure this, and where to look for inspiration. “At DBS, we gave up our training budget of sending executives to fancy business schools and have started putting them through hackathon experiences,” says Paul Cobban, COO, Technology & Operations at DBS Bank. “You take these guys and you give them three days of digital exposure, and then for two days they work with a real startup on a real problem. So you get the stodgy banker meets the 22-year-old coder, and the stodgy banker says, “Let me tell you how this is going to be,” and then the 22-year-old coder says, “I don’t think so,” and so you go through this storming, norming, performing cycle in about half an hour, and then they’r

In this episode Bill Gates wants a robot tax to compensate for job losses; Liverpool launches its own local currency; Atom Bank hires will.i.am as a banking consultant; and more. Guests Alessandro Hatami, Managing Partner at The Pacemakers Andra Sonea, Fellow at the Anthemis Group News this week Business Insider – Will.i.am is reportedly doing a deal with app-only bank Atom that could see the singer invest – Link NYTimes – Silicon Valley tried to upend banks. Now it works with them. – Link FT – The trouble with ‘free’ banking for challenger lenders – Link Finextra – RBS to become fintech fund and high street outlet for challenger banks under HMT remedy – Link Standard Digital – Banks take on M-Pesa with own money transfer service – Link Bloomberg – Facebook Messenger now lets you send money with Transferwise – Link PSFK – Liverpool receives its own digital currency – Link Engadget – Bill Gates wants a robot tax to compensate for job losses – Link Forbes – Why Ant Financial’s $200M i

In this episode We talk to James Lloyd about the incredible FinTech innovation and uptake happening not only in China, but across Asia. James is the Asia-Pacific FinTech Leader at EY, and our point of reference for most of the phenomenal stats coming out of the region. Did you know that during Chinese New Year – which is only 6 days – 46 billion transactions happened on WeChat alone? That’s 46 billion “red packets” – the money you send as gifts. 46 billion! “In London, getting access to a bank account or a credit card or a basic investment or savings product is relatively straightforward,” James says. “In China, traditionally the banks have focused on supporting corporates and state-owned enterprises. So there has been this unmet need, this market gap, that the big technology players have really moved pretty aggressively to fill.” If you enjoyed this episode, please share the love and tell a friend about FinTech Insider, and leave us a review on iTunes—this helps people find us. The post Ep217 – EY’s

Our mantra is digital banking is only 1% finished, and people usually react in two ways to this. Either they believe banking has got miles to go when it comes to tech advancements, or they think digital is merely a way to distribute analogue products. At 11:FS, we believe we’ve got 99% to go, and we’re really excited about the future of banking. But how do we get there? At a recent event in Oulu, Finland, 11:FS CEO David Brear shared the first 5 steps to transform your bank. Watch the video. The post Ep216 – The First 5 Steps to Transform Your Bank appeared first on 11FS. The post Ep216 – The First 5 Steps to Transform Your Bank appeared first on 11:FS.

In this episode Amazon is looking to buy Capital One, or so goes the rumour. It’s been predicted for a long time that Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon would get into financial services, but Amazon is the only one of those companies that specifically needs a payments facility in their core business. James Arscott, CCO of invstr, joins us to discuss this and other headlines, including bitcoin going from funny money to something legit in Japan. We also talk to TrueLayer CEO Francesco Simoneschi on banks becoming software companies; to BBVA Open Innovation Manager Marisol Menendez about BBVA’s competition to find a new model for low interest rate banking; and BodeTree CEO Chris Myers about the three steps FinTechs need to take to survive. News this week Business Insider – Innovative app-only banks are doing something old fashioned — lending money – Link The Telegraph – Co-op Bank puts itself up for sale as it braces for another ‘significant’ loss – Link Level39 – L39 API member TrueLayer comes out

In this episode When most banks are bribing people to join with £100 or a Rihanna CD, Monzo is doing the opposite: building a bank customers love, involving them in its development, and being so amazing the network blows up like Facebook. Monzo, the bank that broke Crowdcube, now has more than 100,000 customers. Next milestone: 1 million. Here’s how they’ll do it. “We’re trying to build the first bank with real network effect. Skype is a great example. The more people you bring onto Skype, the more people you can call,” Tom says. “How did Instagram or Snapchat or Facebook grow? It wasn’t marketing. It was an amazing product with true network effect. We’re trying to learn those lessons. 85 or 90% of our new signups come through referral.” Loving this podcast? Don’t keep it to yourself, tell a friend about FinTech Insider and help us create our own network effect. And while you have five minutes, go on and leave us a review on iTunes. You’ve been meaning to for a while – today’s the day The post Ep214

In this episode Innovation isn’t having an app – it’s having a new business model. Yet for banks, business models are one of the hardest things to innovate around. We discuss what’s broken with traditional bank business models, and how to create new ones, with two people who know best: Tom Blomfield, CEO of Monzo, and Dora Ziambra, Head of Business Development at Azimo. “For me, and many people in the industry, being a marketplace bank is the future,” Tom says. “It’s a customer interface that acts as a platform for all of your financial problems. So a single interface that gives you access to the Azimos and the Funding Circles and the Transferwises, with a delightful, one-click user experience, but still giving you the benefits of that choice and that customer service. So, sort of, looser recoupling around APIs.” If you liked this interview, please review us on iTunes. To learn more about the team that brings you FinTech Insider, visit 11fs.co.uk. Listener offer: for a 30% discount on Innovate Finance

In this episode Is FinTech failing? We discuss this clickbait-y headline which made the rounds recently. We also talk to Lawrence Wintermeyer, CEO of Innovate Finance, to get insight on their latest report that says investment in UK FinTech startups dropped by 33.7% in 2016. Other news: WeChat to (see what we did there? James Lloyd,  Asia-Pacific FinTech Leader at EY, about the 46 billion digital red packets WeChat users sent over Lunar New Year; and Anna Irrera, a journalist at Reuters, updates us on what’s happening with Dodd-Frank. News this week Tech City News – Investment in UK FinTech startups ‘drops by 33.7% in 2016′ – Link The 2016 VC FinTech Investment Landscape by Innovate Finance Innovate Finance’s Global Summit is April 10-11 in London. FinTech Insider will be recording there, and FinTech Insider listeners get a 30% discount if they register for tickets using the discount code FinTechInsider. Coin Telegraph – Switzerland Set to Ease Finance Regulations, Support Blockchain Innovation –

In this episode Serial tech entrepreneur Steve Kirsch (@stkirsch) has founded seven companies and earned a name for himself as the inventor of the optical mouse. Today he’s CEO of Token, a global open API banking platform. Steve says that, historically, banks have operated on limited hours. Central banks have similar systems to be compatible, which has led to architectures that are nowhere near as complex as doing real-time systems. But then internet came along and changed people’s expectations. “Now banks sort of have to be open 24/7, and yet the underlying systems haven’t caught up with that,” Steve says. “And so the challenge is to create technology that can layer on top of the existing banking system that would enable people to have the level of service that they expect, and yet not disrupt things below the decks. It’s almost like putting a modern façade on top of an old cruise ship. That’s essentially what we’ve done. [If] we need more engine power, we call down through certain interfaces and say,

In this episode Liz Lumley, Managing Director of Thought Leadership at Rainmaking, says a woman approached her at one of their events recently and said, “I’m here because I get told all the time: You need to work with startups, and then no one tells me how.” The Rainmaking Summit was designed to give people like her the tools they need to make innovation happen. Straight talk. No bullshit. We sit down with key participants in London to get the lowdown. “We need to move from ROI to R&D,” says Nektarios Liolios, CEO & Co-Founder, Startupbootcamp FinTech. “R&D implies failure. It implies experimentation, and just keep trying, keep trying until it works, right? Having been in the financial industry for nearly 20 years now, we don’t have that. There is no concept of building product, or doing anything, with an R&D mentality. Whereas any other industry has that.” Guests Liz Lumley, Managing Director of Thought Leadership, Rainmaking @LizLum Will Bentinck, Head of Careers, Makers Academy @isoworg Nektar

In this episode How do I change my culture? And what the hell happens to all those bank fines?! Our guest Richard Peers, Director of Financial Services at Microsoft (@Peerster), joins us to discuss these hot issues as part of our weekly roundup of FinTech Insider News. Digital DNA is radically different from legacy culture, and that needs to change, Richard says. To make digital transformation happen, technology is not enough. You have to have the right culture. It’s hearts and minds and empowering people.  It’s not a quick fix, which many people are looking for. Deutsche was recently fined over money laundering claims – but where the hell do these fines go and what’s the politics behind it? How can bitcoin prevent money laundering? What are the new business models we need? Can we serve markets in new ways? Can we make money from data? It’s often a defensive conversation, it’s time for banks to go on the offense and look at open banking as a good thing, Richard says. News this week Telegraph – Fi

In this episode Is PFM dead? Invisible? Or has Personal Financial Management evolved from data-driven piecharts to something more useful? Joining us for today’s deep dive on PFM and Digital Money Management are: Frankie Woodhead, Director of Commercial & Channels at Barclays @FTWoodhead Victor Trokoudes, Founder of Plum, the first Facebook bot for automated savings @vmtrok Pau Velando, GM at Strands Finance @Pau4ir “For us, it’s about taking information, and transforming that information to give relevant services at the right time,” Frankie says. “It’s very easy to say, ‘You’ve overdrawn, sorry.’ What we like to do is think a week ahead. Things like Netflix, which is generally a monthly subscription, comes in a certain way. What we’ve tried to do is second-guess if that payment is going to happen. Like, ‘FYI, your Netflix of £9.99 is due to come out in four days.  You might need to think about doing something different about [your spending].” “The old way to consume PFM was based on charts,” Pau

In this episode News, glorious news! We’ve switched up the format of the show in season 2. Every Monday, we’ll bring you FinTech Insider News, a show dedicated exclusively to the latest FinTech and financial services headlines. Wednesday features FinTech Insider Insights, where we’ll continue to bring on experts to discuss digital banking, new business models, APIs, and all the other areas that matter to our industry. And on Fridays, with FinTech Insider Interviews, we’ll continue to share the individual stories of people making the biggest impact in FinTech and financial services. Guests Frankie Woodhead, Director, Commercial & Channels at Barclays – @FTWoodhead Alessandro Hatami, Managing Partner at The Pacemakers – @ahatami News this week The Telegraph – Donald Trump plans new deal for Britain – Link Pascal Bouvier – The Passporting Gambit – Link Pyments – MiSys aims to kill P2P lending / alternative lending – Link Business Insider – Siemens partners with Scalable Capital – Link Reu

In this episode Tandem CEO Ricky Knox says banking should feel effortless, as easy as listening to Spotify. He shares how Tandem is building this kind of digital bank, and how his previous startups, including Small World Financial Services and Azimo, led him to where he is today. Tandem is the second digital bank in the UK to get its banking license, and recently received a £35 million investment from House of Fraser. “We really want to build banking as a service, or banking as a solution, in the same way that I now listen to Spotify,” Ricky says. “I don’t have a buying experience anymore…I can have music in every room.  It should feel a little bit like that to do your banking.  It shouldn’t be any effort.” You’ll also hear from Chief Customer Officer Ruth Handcock, who says her job is listening to customers, then translating that into what Tandem is building. Enjoy the episode! If you’re a fan of FinTech Insider, please review us on iTunes. This helps other people find us. To learn more about the tea

In this episode Tandem Takeover! We talk to the team building ‘a new kind of bank’ about how you can be digital and still be very human, how to recruit at a startup, the future of banking, how to be truly agile, how to advocate for customers, and more. Guests Ricky Knox, CEO @rickykno Ruth Handcock, Chief Customer Officer @RuthHandcock Nick Perrett, Chief Product Officer “A good bank feels like a bank that actually has your back, that therefore is making decisions in your interest, much like your doctor might or a good friend might,” says Tandem CEO Ricky Knox. “How does that translate into a product and how do we build banking that fits seamlessly around your life, pulls out all the hassle, and answers the requirements you might have for borrowing or lending on an automated basis? The first step in that is owning and understanding the data surrounding your financial services life and relationship. Pulling that data together and forming that holistic picture of how the person’s finances are evol

In this episode Lesley-Anne Vaughan, Director of MiLA Consulting and Co-Creator of M-PESA, talks to us about how she helped develop the famed mobile money transfer service in Kenya. M-Pesa lets customers use their phone to deposit and transfer money from one person to another without using a bank account. It works using a network of thousands of stores, where the cash agent network does debits and credits. “In 2007 we launched M-Pesa as a live service, but in 2005 the original product was microfinance,” Lesley-Anne says. “We were solving a painpoint of how do we get microfinance to be more effective, more efficient, more cheaply administered.” Since 2005, Lesley Anne has been dedicated to mobile money and mobile financial services in emerging markets. The incredible work she did to build and launch M-PESA earned her name on the patent, which is pretty amazing! The post Ep203 – Lesley-Ann Vaughan, Co-Creator of M-PESA; Director of MiLA Consulting appeared first on 11FS. The post Ep203 – Lesley-Ann Va

In this episode What are APIs? We break it down in today’s episode with some great guests. But a little taste: All the connected apps you use on your phone talk via APIs to get their data. So when you check the weather, says David Andrzejek, the weather app on your phone makes an API call to a system to get the weather data. Lesley-Anne Vaughan says APIs are like ordering from a menu at a restaurant. You place your order from the menu, which is like an API call out to the kitchen (system). The food that comes to the table is the system’s response to that API call. What does this have to do with financial services? Bankers should be interested in APIs because they enable the digital experiences their customers want. More API analogies and explanations await in episode 202! Guests Lesley-Ann Vaughan, Co-creator of M-PESA @VaughanLA David Andrzejek, VP Vertical Solutions at Google @davidandrz Aubrey Hawes, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Oracle @gahawes3 Ghela Boskovich, Founder of FemTec