Chris Skinner's blog Shaping the future of finance

Following on from the discussions of The Wizard of Oz being a political allegory and rally cry against Wall Street and capitalism, did you realise that the boardgame Monopoly is the same, as in a game meant to illustrate the evils of capitalism? If not, then …

I was surprised to make a chance discovery about The Wizard of Oz.  The film with Judy Garland is firmly embedded in modern culture as a classic, but did you know that it was a rally call against the financial system when the book was …

I was in a conversation with a bank executive talking about innovation.   We all know the Catch-22 in a bank: you want to be innovative, but only as long as there’s no risk but, with any innovation, there has to be risk.  You can play …

This week’s main blog headlines are … How often does your bank refresh its apps and architecture? I was talking with a few FinTech firms the other day. They are all fully licensed banks, and are less than 15 years old. They all seem to …

I was talking with a few FinTech firms the other day. They are all fully licensed banks, and are less than 15 years old. They all seem to have one thing in common: refreshment. What I mean by this is that they talk about technology …

I keep trying to define and delineate more and more of this FinTech Wave. It is no longer FinTech, but PayTech, IDTech, InsurTech, WealthTech, RegTech, GulfTech and more. The thing that strikes me the most is that there are two fundamentally different FinTech camps: those …

I received an email the other day pointing my attention to a report from the Center for Financial Inclusion at Accion (CFI), a think tank that engages and challenges the industry to better serve, protect and empower for financial inclusion. I had not heard of CFI before, …

I enjoyed this article in the Evening Standard by Melanie McDonagh and thought I would share it here, to see what reaction it gets. The loss of our high-street banks will make us all poorer — but not financially If you have tears, reader, prepare to shed them …

Last week marked ten years since the financial crisis hit. On August 9 2007, BNP Paribas froze three of its American funds, the first in a chain of events which would lead to the biggest recession since the Great Depression. These funds were tied to …

Things we’re reading today include … Technology is making banking human again Interview: Matteo Cassina, Saxo Bank – is digital banking the new Big Brother? Gradual steps to control shadow banking problem How US sanctions against North Korea could affect Chinese banks Commonwealth Bank to …

This week’s main blog headlines are … Banks are failing digital due to legacy and leadership (Harvard research) Just found an interesting document from Harvard Business Review with the title: How financial services views the digital agenda. It is the result of research conducted by …

Just found an interesting document from Harvard Business Review with the title: How financial services views the digital agenda. It is the result of research conducted by the Harvard Business Review with the Genpact Research Institute, looking at the impact of digitalisation in finance, and …

Things we’re reading today include … Animal fat to stay in future banknotes, Bank of England concludes Mifid vies with Brexit as City traders’ main problem Co-op Bank’s losses narrow to £135m despite uncertain first half   SEC pushes back on Chinese-led takeover of Chicago …

A year ago, I wrote a piece about Fin and Tech being like Father and Son. The thing that I was noting is the chasm between bank leadership teams, who are generally men over 50, and FinTech startups, who typically have young visionaries and significant …

Things we’re reading today include … I was a trader on the day of the financial crash – this is what really happened ‘Trapped’ consumers miss out on £10m by not switching banks Here’s the ‘snoozing’ giant that could crush bank stocks The 10 rarest …

It was interesting to see the release of a discussion paper by the EBA (European Banking Authority) last Friday. As a regulatory body, they have decided that they need to take action on FinTech, and are asking for input on what action to take. The …

Things we’re reading today include … Santander blocked trans woman’s bank account because she ‘sounded like a man’ Why are Britain’s banks blaming customers for online banking fraud? Bank of England covered up failed WW1 loan deal Worldpay agrees £9.3bn tie-up with Vantiv Standard Life …

I was talking to a group of Treasury folks and the guy before me gave a pitch about the CFO of the future.  The pitch focused upon how the CFO would be managing risk, incorporating different technologies, managing M&A, dealing with globalisation and so on …

Things we’re reading today include … Tandem app in deal to take over Harrods Bank Lending Club: overbanked Funds target ‘unknown’ stocks as Wall Street cuts analyst jobs Worldpay granted second deadline extension for Vantiv deal Bitcoin soars to record high value Monitise shareholder slams …

You may be aware that I am a Non-Executive Director of 11:FS. If not, have you not been awake for the past year, and the success the guys are having? Not only have they won some of the biggest digital bank transformation projects in Europe …

Just over a year ago, it was predicted that the skies would fall, the earth would open and fire and brimstone would rain down all over Britain if we voted to leave Europe. Our people ignored all the dire warnings – what do experts know? …

Things we’re reading today include … Is your account safe? Banks issue new sort codes in ringfencing of high street operations China’s bank regulator lets crackdown deadline slip over stability worries Australian bank: Buggy software made us miss money laundering scam Consumer spending suffers longest …