Chris Skinner's blog

Shaping the future of finance

Blog Index

The Finanser’s Week: 4th May – 10th May 2026

This week’s blog discussions included … Let’s be honest: retail banking is broken Over the past decade, the industry has aggressively optimised for cost and digital efficiency and, in doing so, it has quietly dismantled the human infrastructure that made banking work for millions of people. Start with the facts. In the UK alone, more…

The Finanser’s Week: 27th April – 3rd May 2026

This week’s main discussions include … If people do not trust the system, they will not use it I just got the LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) Risk Intelligence report which makes clear that we have crossed a line. Fraud is no longer something that happens at the edges of the financial system. It has…

The Finanser’s Week:20th April – 26th April 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Will global fintech banks destroy traditional banking? I was recently interviewed by the International Finance Magazine about Revolut getting their UK banking licence and what this means to banks in general. Here’s the discussion: With Revolut securing a UK banking licence after years of scrutiny, do you see this as part…

The Finanser’s Week: 13th April – 19th April 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Did the regulator just admit that banking is a mess? I’ve just read the regulatory roadmap that the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority released this week and realised that it is less a neat plan and more a recognition that the current system is broken and we’ve run out of…

The Finanser’s Week: 6th April – 12th April 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Almost half of the world’s banks aren’t ready for ISO20022 Just got some interesting research from RedCompass Labs that states 44% of banks aren’t on track to meet ISO 20022’s structured address migration deadline in November 2026. It’s an important deadline as it marks a hard stop to the old SWIFT…

The Finanser’s Week: 30th March – 5th April 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Money only works in a trusted, shared system … which is why blockchains don’t work There’s a fundamental truth about money that we often forget: money only works because we all agree to use the same system. Whether it’s Visa, SWIFT or central bank money, the power of finance…

The Finanser’s Week: 23rd March – 29th March 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Programmable liquidity: five foundations reshaping modern treasury I had a great chat the other day – the first in a series of three – with Quant’s Chief Product Officer Martin Hargreaves about programmable liquidity. What’s that? Read on … Programmable liquidity: five foundations reshaping modern treasury How is programmable…

The Finanser’s Week: 16th March – 22nd March 2026

This week’s main discussions include … Is the future digital identity your heartbeat? I use a variety of sites like Coinbase and IG for investing but find them very cumbersome. Trying to find how to sell and get rid of assets is not easy, unless you do it often. Here’s my vision of the near-term…

The Finanser’s Week: 9th March – 15th March 2026

This week’s main discussions include … What is x402 and why will it transform payments? The next era of payments: when money moves at internet speed I just found an interesting report by KPMG about a new payment standard called x402. Have you heard of it? If you haven’t, it’s built to ensure open, free, frictionless…

The Finanser’s Week: 2nd March – 8th March 2026

This week’s main discussions include … The Intelligence Revolution I just did a webinar sponsored by Xpand IT. Here is a summary: From Physical to Digital to Intelligent: The Third Revolution of Finance Let me start with a simple question. How many of you think we’re living through a period of unprecedented change in finance?…