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I’m such a futurist nerd in banking that, thirty years ago, I forecast banks would open telco services and vice versa, and can prove it if you want. The reason? Both have frequent customer contact, high transaction volumes and similar capabilities. Just seven years ago, I was still banging on the same drum. It is…

I guess the key thing about becoming an AI-native bank is to start with a clean sheet of paper. Most banks are adding AI services to old systems and dysfunctional processes; what we should be doing is starting from scratch, creating an AI core that looks at how to deliver the best customer experience. For…

For longer than most fintech founders have been alive, I’ve been advocating digital transformation. Digital transformation is where digital is at the heart of the business. You convert from physical to digital by reinventing the business and the business model. You start with digital at the core, and add physical on top when and where…

It’s time to wind down for the summer hols, so I will be posting less for the next two weeks. In that context, I thought you might like a story about how to make the most of your downtime by talking about time. We all know and probably would like to own a Rolex watch….

I just got a copy of the Payments Association’s Financial Crime Report. Here’s a quick summary: About this research The Payments Association surveyed 163 financial crime professionals from 33 countries, primarily UK-based (66%). ​ Participants included senior decision-makers like CEOs and compliance heads from banks and fintech companies. ​ Challenge Landscape 72% identify fraud as…

This week’s main blog discussions include … What is an acceptable level of fraud? Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI and creator of ChatGPT and more – along with the PayPal Mafia – was speaking about bank capital rules this week and made an interesting comment that: “There are some FIs that will accept a…

Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI and creator of ChatGPT and more – along with the PayPal Mafia https://www.ceotodaymagazine.com/2025/04/who-owns-chatgpt/ – was speaking about bank capital rules this week and made an interesting comment that: “There are some FIs that will accept a voice print to move a lot of money. That is a crazy thing…

We are really good at creating bingo buzz words in business to get everyone feeling they are missing the buzz. Terms such as Big Data, Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS, invented by me!), embedded finance, invisible banking and more turn up every day. Some get traction and some don’t, but the whole idea is to make you feel…

I recently got an invite to present a TEDx talk at Haberdashers School in Elstree, England. Shortly afterwards, a second TEDx talk invite came through from the American School of Warsaw, Poland. Of course, I accepted both, but then the challenge became how to do two TEDx talks with some clear differentiation. The result is…

There’s a huge debate about banks and data. Should banks share data or sell data? This has been going on for over a decade. For example, Barclays tried to share and sell customer data back in 2013 and it hit the headlines; ING did the same in 2014 and got into similar issues. Both banks…