The Finanser’s Week: 22nd June – 28th June 2015

This week's main stories are ...

Question: change the bank or launch a new bank?

So I was talking about the big challenges of creating a Digital Bank, and am reminded of the approaches that banks take to do this.  The first is the hardest, and it’s the one I described last week: transformation.

Banks as Value Systems Integrators

Banks have historically controlled the value chain of finance from deposits to credit.  Because of this, banks have become control freaks, believing they have to build and manage everything but this is last century thinking.

The case for cloud: cut IT costs by 40% or else!

I met a large bank’s CIO the other day who was told to reduce his IT budget for 2016 by 40%.  He was a bit upset, and asked me if I had any ideas?  I had a few but it’s a tough ask, especially when most banks IT budgets are exploding. 

When everyone on the planet has a mobile money account, things will change

I talk about M-PESA and mobile financial inclusion a lot.  It’s high on the agenda of many governments and charities, most notably the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation who claim that the world’s poorest nations will see an uplift in their wealth faster than any other nations over the next fifteen years thanks to mobile money.

The Top Ten Quotes About Banking Of All Time

One of the social communities I’ve joined was having a discussion about the greatest literati quotations related to banking the other day.  It was so good that I thought I would share here, especially as it’s Friday …

The major general news stories of the past week include ...   

Atom boss: founding a bank is like being beaten up - The Telegraph
The boss of Britain's newest bank says setting up a lender is a bruising process

RBS shareholders have expressed fury at bank chief Sir Philip Hampton's 'terrible legacy' - The Independent
The outgoing chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland has been heavily criticised by shareholders at his final annual general meeting in Edinburgh.

Exclusive: JPMorgan executive chosen to rebuild transaction-policing unit leaves - Reuters
ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - A high-ranking JPMorgan Chase & Co executive responsible for revamping the bank's anti-money laundering practices after U.S. regulators found lax controls has left in recent days, according to internal memos read to Reuters and confirmed by the bank.

Digital-only challenger bank Atom wins licence - The Telegraph
The Durham-based lender hopes to offer products to customers later this year

Bankers face ten-year wait for their bonuses under new rules - The Telegraph
Regulators have introduced 'the toughest bank pay rules in the world'

Yet another 'unthinkable' solution is on the cards in Switzerland - The Independent
Pity the Swiss National Bank. At the central bank’s policy meeting last week, it acknowledged that the exchange rate it manages is overvalued, which means it is likely to undermine economic growth, turn away tourists and hold back long-term prosperity. Yet the SNB refrained from doing anything about it, and

JPMorgan banker Jimmy Lee mourned by Wall Street notables at memorial - Reuters
NEW YORK (Reuters) - When JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon had cancer last year, banker Jimmy Lee came to his office every day to give him a hug and tell him that he loved him like a brother.

Hackers steal data using pitta bread - BBC
Secret encryption keys can be stolen using a cheap gadget so small it could be concealed inside some pitta bread.

The Greek crisis in numbers - The Independent
European leaders are holding an emergency summit that could help break the deadlock around the Greek debt crisis.

Building society warns savers against peer-to-peer loan splurge - The Telegraph
New ISA rules will give savers tax relief on the alternative loan products

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