Revolutionary advancements in big data, artificial intelligence, and cryptography are unlocking a new era of personalisation in financial services. Scarlett Sieber, CSO of Money20/20 shares more on the future of money.
A customer opens their banking app. It’s payday and they find not just their new balance, but their salary has already been allocated based on their recent spending patterns. The app has adjusted their mortgage payment to take advantage of a new lower rate and redirected the savings to their investment portfolio. It’s even created a new savings plan for a future home renovation – based on recent online searches and interactions.
A few years ago, scenarios like this were illustrative of an aspirational future, a hyper-personalised financial landscape we were gradually approaching. Suddenly, that future has become a reality. Today, such personalised experiences are within reach, enabled by the convergence of significant advancements in several large-scale technologies.
This transition signifies a fundamental shift in the nature of financial services—a paradigm shift that marks the emergence of truly customer-centric financial solutions. This is not merely an aspiration but a tangible reality, representing the new battleground for the future of financial services. A customer universe of one.
Since the 2008 financial crisis, fintech has emerged as a transformative force not only for reshaping financial services but also for society at large. A convergence of technological advances, an ever-evolving geopolitical and economic climate, as well as societal and demographic trends set the scene for disruption.
M-Pesa revolutionised financial transactions with a mobile-based money transfer service, reaching tens of millions of previously unbanked, and setting the blueprint for a global movement that by 2021 had seen 1.2 billion adults globally report having a mobile money account (Two-thirds of those representing account ownership in low- and middle-income countries). In developed economies, severely undermined consumer trust in established banking institutions allowed agile, customer-centric fintech startups like Revolut and N26 to gain traction. Geopolitically, the emergence of China as an economic and technological superpower has propelled domestic fintech players such as Ant Financial onto the global stage.
The story of financial services and technology is a long and interwoven one. If the fintech that emerged post-2008 has accelerated digitisation, the process started centuries ago. The stock ticker, which revolutionised the dissemination of stock prices, was invented in 1867.
Advances in fintech have long followed this piecemeal path, with isolated improvements gradually coming together until a step change. That gradual evolution, driven by the internet, and then the mobile, has accelerated the pace of this progress. After centuries of fiat currency, we now find a market with a plethora of currencies - CBDCs, stablecoins, crypto, for example.
We are now at the culmination of that phase of fintech growth and entering a new one. This new era is fundamentally different. From Artificial Intelligence to blockchain and quantum computing we are witnessing breakthroughs in a number of foundational technologies simultaneously. These are hugely transformative technologies on their own, and innovations in each field are progressing at breakneck speed. Combined, these advances will transform the fabric of financial services and the world as we know it.
These monumental technological advancements enable atomic-level precision. A concept we call the ‘Nano World’. In this realm, vast datasets and sophisticated training models distil complex data into granular insights. This allows financial services to be tailored to the smallest unit possible: the individual customer. It’s more than personalisation; it’s financial services made uniquely for you.
Big Data: Harnessing vast amounts of data to gain deep insights into individual customer behaviours, preferences, and financial goals, enabling highly customised financial products and services.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML): Utilising AI and ML to analyse data and predict customer needs, creating financial solutions that are dynamically tailored to each customer in real-time.
Blockchain Technology: Ensuring secure and transparent transactions, fostering trust, and allowing for precise customisation of financial services, thereby enhancing security and efficiency.
Cloud Computing: Providing the scalability and agility needed to deliver personalised experiences in real-time, ensuring that financial services can adapt quickly to individual customer demands.
In this ‘Nano World’, financial services are no longer constrained by one-size-fits-all solutions. Uniquely programmed money tailored for each instance, predictive investment strategies tailored to adapt to real-time changes in personal circumstances and market dynamics, or highly bespoke risk-adjusted insurance policies derived from identifying intricate patterns and correlations using quantum computing.
This convergence of technologies isn’t an evolution in customer experience. It's a paradigm shift. Financial services will be more personalised, secure, and accessible than ever before. This is the future of financial services. It's bespoke and tailored products – at scale.
These advancements make a truly customer-centric financial world a reality. As exciting as this new era is, these technologies bring with them huge opportunities and risks. The future's not set and making sure we maximise the former and minimise the latter will be a significant task. We must navigate the associated risks and uncertainties carefully.
Money is changing. It's becoming personal, tailored, and made just for you. Will you watch it evolve, or will you take part in shaping its future?
Join the leaders changing financial services at Money20/20 USA if you want to take part in shaping the future of money.
About Scarlett Sieber
Scarlett is the Chief Strategy and Growth Officer at Money20/20 and a bestselling author of ‘Embedded Finance: When Payments Become An Experience’. She has served as a senior advisor to NASA and held leadership roles at USAA, Opus Bank, and BBVA. Scarlett co-founded the data visualisation startup Infomous. She is a recognised fintech expert, often invited to speak on embedded finance and fintech advancements.
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