Welcome to The Finanser by Chris Skinner. The Finanser discusses all things fintech, finance, banking, technology and, most importantly, the future. Chris Skinner has been voted the most influential technologist in Britain and received a lifetime achievement award for his visionary approach to the future of money from the Payments Association. He has advised the…
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This week’s main discussions include … Why bank branches still matter Many have argued for years that branches are dead. Many in the fintech world believe that people don’t need branches. Wrong. A bit like cash, the pandemic forced a change of behaviour. Human needs for human service (why branches matter, part two) I’ve recently…
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I’ve recently joined the advisory board of a startup focused upon opening financial branches called banxlocal. Why the hell would anyone open branches? Well, it’s all about human needs for human services as that creates trust. I’m a big believer in banking and finance for consumers still providing High Street access in a store or branch….
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Many have argued for years that branches are dead. Many in the fintech world believe that people don’t need branches. Some think that the pandemic proved that customers can bank fine without them and that many now prefer digital. Wrong. A bit like cash, the pandemic forced a change of behaviour. Less cash was being…
Read More
I just got a fascinating document sent over from the White House. Bearing in mind, the White House is the American civil service and not directly communicating Donald Trump’s opinions, thank goodness, their reports are often really insightful. This one really hooked me as it is all about AI and the Great Divergence. The Great…
Read More
I often talk about quantum computing and how it could break the encryption keys of our current financial system, including bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. In fact, the first time was seven years ago, when I referred to The Quantum Resistant Ledger. Even way back then, there was a company working on ideas to avoid encryption…
Read More
I just had a great visit to Kuala Lumpur, a place I go to often as I have many friends there. This time I also witnessed the launch of EPOS360, an AI-driven growth platform of Ant International targeted at small businesses. What is EPOS360? Well, you can read the press release, but here is my…
Read More
My friend Lory Kehoe spotted a white paper by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) that was released in December discussing Project Leap, a deep technical experiment showing that core payment systems can migrate to post-quantum cryptography without breaking how money moves today. It’s a fascinating paper and an important one for us fintech nerds,…
Read More
I just got a summary of my new book from the publishers. It comes out in the summer but, for those interested, here are the key messages: Core Thesis The book argues that banking is entering its third great technological revolution: Mainframe era → automation and scale Digital era → connectivity, mobile, fintech, experience Intelligence…
Read More
Every year I visit the analytics engine to see which blogs got the most visits. This list is this year’s although, interestingly, the blog entry with the most clicks generally is the one I wrote about who invented WiFi. Regardless, the list this year is interesting as it is mainly about fintech firms like Klarna,…
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I get regular emails with facts and stats, and one that I subscribe to regularly is from Fintech Global. Fintech Global provides research and, more importantly, connects senior decision-makers via industry-leading conferences. Enough of the advertising as what intrigues me more is facts and stats, and their research gives an interesting reflection of the world…
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For many years, I’ve been among the fintech influencers arguing for a digital identity system. Most people reply that they don’t want one. Even an anonymous encrypted one. They fear that governments will find ways to track and trace them, and so it does not work. Their fears are slightly irrational as, if you use…
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I spotted a quote this week: “All truth passes through three stages: first, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as self-evident.” — Arthur Schopenhauer My mind immediately moved to bitcoin and cryptocurrency and, specifically, Jamie Dimon. For years, Dimon has said that bitcoin is a scam and yet, now,…
Read More
Many years ago, I was presenting to a country suffering sanctions. No longer able to access the SWIFT network and pretty much excommunicated by most banks worldwide, they were suffering. Of course, they could do nested accounts, where you bury your bank in a pyramid of other banks, but that is pretty complicated, so I…
Read MoreI’ve recently joined the advisory board of a startup focused upon opening financial branches called banxlocal. Why the hell would anyone open branches? Well, it’s all about human needs for human services as that creates trust. I’m a big believer in banking and finance for consumers still providing High Street access in a store or branch….
Read MoreI often talk about quantum computing and how it could break the encryption keys of our current financial system, including bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. In fact, the first time was seven years ago, when I referred to The Quantum Resistant Ledger. Even way back then, there was a company working on ideas to avoid encryption…
Read MoreI just had a great visit to Kuala Lumpur, a place I go to often as I have many friends there. This time I also witnessed the launch of EPOS360, an AI-driven growth platform of Ant International targeted at small businesses. What is EPOS360? Well, you can read the press release, but here is my…
Read MoreI just got a summary of my new book from the publishers. It comes out in the summer but, for those interested, here are the key messages: Core Thesis The book argues that banking is entering its third great technological revolution: Mainframe era → automation and scale Digital era → connectivity, mobile, fintech, experience Intelligence…
Read MoreEvery year I visit the analytics engine to see which blogs got the most visits. This list is this year’s although, interestingly, the blog entry with the most clicks generally is the one I wrote about who invented WiFi. Regardless, the list this year is interesting as it is mainly about fintech firms like Klarna,…
Read More
Building on my post earlier regarding the arguments for and against digital identity, there is another argument around what they mean for privacy. Luckily, a friend of mine decided to send me a post they thought useful around those themes and I liked what they wrote so, here it is: How People Are Prioritizing Digital…
Read MoreFor many years, I’ve been among the fintech influencers arguing for a digital identity system. Most people reply that they don’t want one. Even an anonymous encrypted one. They fear that governments will find ways to track and trace them, and so it does not work. Their fears are slightly irrational as, if you use…
Read More
Every three months my accountant asks me to send them my bank statements to do the company’s VAT returns. It’s annoying but hey, no one can access my bank account except me. But then something happened recently. The company’s bank accounts are with Barclays, and they changed the interface or did something so that, when…
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I was having an interesting debate the other day about how AI will impact banking longer-term. The most interesting angle was that AI will provide knowledge and blockchain (or distributed ledgers, if you prefer) will provide provenance, and that the two combined are a killer partnership. Thinking about it, this gets interesting. So AI can…
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Things we’re reading today include … Bank of England admits inflation bungle European life insurers’ systemic risk ‘non-trivial’ European banks take a fresh crack at Wall Street Fintech Adviser Titan Hit With Second SEC Penalty Over “Misleading” 2,700% Crypto Return Claims Lloyds to train all 67,000 staff in AI as banks go digital Fintechs should…
Read MoreMy friend Lory Kehoe spotted a white paper by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) that was released in December discussing Project Leap, a deep technical experiment showing that core payment systems can migrate to post-quantum cryptography without breaking how money moves today. It’s a fascinating paper and an important one for us fintech nerds,…
Read MoreI just got a summary of my new book from the publishers. It comes out in the summer but, for those interested, here are the key messages: Core Thesis The book argues that banking is entering its third great technological revolution: Mainframe era → automation and scale Digital era → connectivity, mobile, fintech, experience Intelligence…
Read More
How could I write a series of 2026 predictions without a specific focus on fintech and cryptocurrencies? The headlines are that: Systems Become Proactive: Technology shifts from reacting to events to anticipating needs AI Becomes Invisible Infrastructure: Intelligence moves from tools to embedded decision-making Digital Layers Disappear into Daily Life: Identity, security, payments, and compliance…
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Everyone and their weird cousin is invested today. In crypto, of course. Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, even Dogecoin, or its low-rank pup Floki. Cryptocurrencies are constantly on the news, social media is buzzing, and one in about a gazillion investors wins big. We’re not even debating here if the notion of digital assets has merit as…
Read MoreEvery year I visit the analytics engine to see which blogs got the most visits. This list is this year’s although, interestingly, the blog entry with the most clicks generally is the one I wrote about who invented WiFi. Regardless, the list this year is interesting as it is mainly about fintech firms like Klarna,…
Read MoreI spotted a quote this week: “All truth passes through three stages: first, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as self-evident.” — Arthur Schopenhauer My mind immediately moved to bitcoin and cryptocurrency and, specifically, Jamie Dimon. For years, Dimon has said that bitcoin is a scam and yet, now,…
Read MoreMany years ago, I was presenting to a country suffering sanctions. No longer able to access the SWIFT network and pretty much excommunicated by most banks worldwide, they were suffering. Of course, they could do nested accounts, where you bury your bank in a pyramid of other banks, but that is pretty complicated, so I…
Read More
I just got an invite to invest in Spacecoin. What is that? SPACECOIN is a visionary cryptocurrency built for the space economy and designed to offer a decentralized, efficient, and secure platform for interplanetary trade investors and exploration. WTH? My initial reaction was the idea that this is launching a cryptocurrency for those who want…
Read MoreI’ve recently joined the advisory board of a startup focused upon opening financial branches called banxlocal. Why the hell would anyone open branches? Well, it’s all about human needs for human services as that creates trust. I’m a big believer in banking and finance for consumers still providing High Street access in a store or branch….
Read MoreMany have argued for years that branches are dead. Many in the fintech world believe that people don’t need branches. Some think that the pandemic proved that customers can bank fine without them and that many now prefer digital. Wrong. A bit like cash, the pandemic forced a change of behaviour. Less cash was being…
Read MoreI just got a fascinating document sent over from the White House. Bearing in mind, the White House is the American civil service and not directly communicating Donald Trump’s opinions, thank goodness, their reports are often really insightful. This one really hooked me as it is all about AI and the Great Divergence. The Great…
Read MoreMany believe the big themes of Davos last week were around Donald Trump, his ambitions to take over Greenland and Canada, and Mark Carney’s speech. Stop “living within a lie”, Mark Carney #Davos They were the headline news but, underneath those headlines, the main theme of Davos was AI. AI featured in almost every session…
Read MoreI just watched The Life of Chuck based upon a story by Stephen King (strongly recommended). Throughout the film, it constantly references Carl Sagan’s Cosmic Calendar. The Cosmic Calendar compresses the 13.8-billion-year history of the universe into a single calendar year, where January 1 is the Big Bang and December 31 is the present*. At…
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Everyone has been hailing Mark Carney’s speech at Davos as one of the GOAT speeches of the 21st century. It forced me to take out 15 minutes to listen to it, and yes, it is a great speech. Well worth the time. Mark Carney is Prime Minister of Canada, and the former Governor of the…
Read MoreI often talk about quantum computing and how it could break the encryption keys of our current financial system, including bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. In fact, the first time was seven years ago, when I referred to The Quantum Resistant Ledger. Even way back then, there was a company working on ideas to avoid encryption…
Read More
Waking up today, I am shocked to see the headlines about aliens wrecking the world’s financial markets. Apparently, various American politicians have kind of confirmed that aliens are real, admitting to an 80-year cover-up including Dulce Base in New Mexico and Area 51, Nevada. The reason this came up today is that, if confirmed true,…
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Following up on yesterday’s blog, is there a solution to the social inequality debate? Well, there are many that have been tried, but they were all fatally flawed. Communism led to dictatorships and autocracies; taxing the rich to give to the poor sounds good in theory, but fails in practice (just look at the number…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Why bank branches still matter Many have argued for years that branches are dead. Many in the fintech world believe that people don’t need branches. Wrong. A bit like cash, the pandemic forced a change of behaviour. Human needs for human service (why branches matter, part two) I’ve recently…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Payments and FinTech Regulation 2026: What’s on the Horizon in the UK and EU? Revolut Partners With ElevenLabs To Bolster Customer Service Sweden’s Ikano Bank claims to put people at the center of automation Eurosystem: DLT-based assets to be accepted as central bank collateral Santander to close further 44…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Tether says it bought 27 tons of gold in fourth quarter White House to host meeting between bank and crypto next week to discuss digital asset legislation Deutsche Bank offices raided in money laundering probe Pay by Bank Emerges as an Alternative to Cards for Online Payments Metro Bank…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Cryptocurrency money laundering reached $82 billion in 2025, Chainalysis says Revolut launches fully licensed digital bank in Mexico Tether will become ‘gold central bank’ in post-dollar world, CEO Ardoino says Can Wells Fargo make it in investment banking? Deutsche Bank sees gold reaching $6 000 per ounce in 2026…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Why women will shape the next era of finance Major UK bank fined for breaching Russian sanctions Why Muslims worldwide are being ‘debanked’ Europe risks falling further behind, banking group warns Fintech in 2026: Why responsible AI, regulatory clarity and scale matter more than ever Ripple Secures Strategic Saudi…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Bank of England admits inflation bungle European life insurers’ systemic risk ‘non-trivial’ European banks take a fresh crack at Wall Street Fintech Adviser Titan Hit With Second SEC Penalty Over “Misleading” 2,700% Crypto Return Claims Lloyds to train all 67,000 staff in AI as banks go digital Fintechs should…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Stop “living within a lie”, Mark Carney #Davos Everyone has been hailing Mark Carney’s speech at Davos as one of the GOAT speeches of the 21st century. It forced me to take out 15 minutes to listen to it, and yes, it is a great speech. Well worth the…
Read MoreThings we’re reading today include … Revolut scraps U.S. bank acquisition plans, to apply for license – report Trump sues JPMorgan for $5bn over account closure after Capitol riot The collapse of a Brazilian bank ensnares politicians and judges Will new EU banking rules affect foreign bank accounts of French residents? Is Fintech the New…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Why bank branches still matter Many have argued for years that branches are dead. Many in the fintech world believe that people don’t need branches. Wrong. A bit like cash, the pandemic forced a change of behaviour. Human needs for human service (why branches matter, part two) I’ve recently…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Stop “living within a lie”, Mark Carney #Davos Everyone has been hailing Mark Carney’s speech at Davos as one of the GOAT speeches of the 21st century. It forced me to take out 15 minutes to listen to it, and yes, it is a great speech. Well worth the…
Read More
This week’s main blog discussions include … My next new book: “Intelligent Bank” I just got a summary of my new book from the publishers. It comes out in the summer but, for those interested, here are the key messages … The more wealth amongst the few, the more likely the revolution by the many…
Read MoreI just got a summary of my new book from the publishers. It comes out in the summer but, for those interested, here are the key messages: Core Thesis The book argues that banking is entering its third great technological revolution: Mainframe era → automation and scale Digital era → connectivity, mobile, fintech, experience Intelligence…
Read More
During the holidays, the main blog discussions included … What will happen in 2026? Welcome to 2026, the year of the Horse in the Chinese New Year, which arrives in February. A Year of the Horse symbolizes forward momentum, encouraging bold actions and the pursuit of dreams. That sounds pretty good, but what’s gonna happen?…
Read MoreEvery year I visit the analytics engine to see which blogs got the most visits. This list is this year’s although, interestingly, the blog entry with the most clicks generally is the one I wrote about who invented WiFi. Regardless, the list this year is interesting as it is mainly about fintech firms like Klarna,…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Did 2025 really happen? (the year of deep fake) 2025 has been the year of AI and AI hype from Agentic AI to AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) to Robots, chatbots and more but, for me, it has been the year of Deep Fake AI. It all started with the…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Little Britain: “A rainy island with a hostile tax system is a hard sell” Many years ago, I was presenting to a country suffering sanctions. No longer able to access the SWIFT network and pretty much excommunicated by most banks worldwide, they were suffering. Of course, they could do…
Read MoreThis week’s main discussions include … Spacecoin: a currency for astronauts? I just got an invite to invest in Spacecoin. What is that? SPACECOIN is a visionary cryptocurrency built for the space economy and designed to offer a decentralized, efficient, and secure platform for interplanetary trade investors and exploration. WTH? What’s the next tech revolution?…
Read More
This week’s main discussions include … Those who built our digital world are digging our graves Just stumbled across an update from Stephen Klein, one of the leading voices on LinkedIn. He wrote a fascinating update about how the digital billionaires are insuring themselves for the possible impact of an apocalypse and are spending billions on…
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