The main blog headlines are …
Banking is what we do and technology is how we do it
A decade ago, we talked about the financial crisis, technology, regulations and compliance. A decade later, we still talk about regulations and compliance, but the discussion has changed thanks to the explosion of thousands of start-up firms around the world, in every constituency, doing things …
Just spent a day chairing a payments stream at a conference. We talked about AI, biometrics, central bank digital currencies or CBDCs as everyone calls them, infrastructure, pipes, plumbing … you name it … but the bit that intrigued me was the views of Kristian …
Q: Do investors believe bank digital transformations are succeeding? A: No.
Anyone who’s read this blog since 2007 or my books since 2014 will know that I have a regular rallying call: replace core systems; refresh the bank’s technology stack to an open architecture; embrace APIs, apps and analytics; deep dive on data; transform to be …
The Stories We Tell Ourselves About Open Banking
I recently spotted a great write-up on Open Banking by Alex Johnson, who has kindly agreed I can republish it. So, here we go … The Stories We Tell Ourselves About Open Banking Distinguishing between what’s true and what we want to be true. Alex …
Massive cyberattack on the US wholesale payments system (simulation but real?)
One report you may have missed was this one: CyberRisk and the U.S. Financial System: A Pre-Mortem Analysis from The New York Fed and released in January. The paper focuses upon a co-ordinated cyberattack on the wholesale payment systems of America and can be summarised …
And the top news headlines this week are …
Five things to look out for in HSBC's new strategy - Reuters
HSBC on Tuesday reports 2019 results and will set out its new strategy, where interim Chief Executive Noel Quinn will audition for the permanent role by announcing major restructuring efforts. Here are five key things to look out for:
Banking in the new decade – profitability will remain a challenge: EY - RBI
Banks had a tough year in 2019. Weak economic results, global political tensions, including US-China trade tensions and Brexit-related uncertainty did not help.
Metro Bank Chief Risk Officer exits following latest shakeup at the top - AltFi
Following another overhaul of the Metro Bank’s top executives, Aileen Gillan, who was one of the first executives to join the bank in 2013, will step down. Gillan’s exit comes after Craig Donaldson, the former chief executive of Metro Bank, and Vernon Hill, the founder and chairman ...
German digital bank N26 pulls out of UK, blaming Brexit - The Guardian
More than 200,000 customers given until 15 April to move money before accounts closed The German digital bank N26 is has blamed Brexit for its decision to pull out of the UK and close more than 200,000 customer accounts. The lender has given customers less than two months to move
Blockchain: The revolution that hasn't quite happened - BBC
Blockchain was hyped as a secure and cheap way to store or retrieve data, but it is yet to take off.
Santander fintech guru trades punk rock for asset management - Financial Times
Mariano Belinky brings his disruptive tactics to the bank’s fund arm
Bank of England gold: Rare look inside the vaults - BBC
The BBC's Frank Gardner is shown how £194bn worth of gold bars are stored.
How far will Alison Rose go to take RBS into the 21st century? - The Guardian
As the first female boss of a major high street lender prepares to unveil her strategy, job cuts could be in her sights The new chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland will be hoping to make a mark when she unveils a fresh strategy next week for the 293-year-old
A new rural bank branch opening! What's going on? - BBC
Is Hawes, in the Yorkshire Dales, a template for the future of bank branches and community services?
‘The system is broken’: the billionaire investor who fears a return to the 1930s - Guardian
Ray Dalio, who has a near $19bn fortune, is one of a handful of the 0.01% to go public with concerns about the system that created that wealth Ray Dalio, the billionaire investor, has just released his first children’s book. It’s a bedtime story he hopes will inspire a new
Chris M Skinner
Chris Skinner is best known as an independent commentator on the financial markets through his blog, TheFinanser.com, as author of the bestselling book Digital Bank, and Chair of the European networking forum the Financial Services Club. He has been voted one of the most influential people in banking by The Financial Brand (as well as one of the best blogs), a FinTech Titan (Next Bank), one of the Fintech Leaders you need to follow (City AM, Deluxe and Jax Finance), as well as one of the Top 40 most influential people in financial technology by the Wall Street Journal's Financial News. To learn more click here...
