Richard Davies

Sophie Guibaud, strategic sparring partner at Building Alpha, offers sharp takes on challenger bank categories and boards. Richard Davies, CEO of Allica Bank, speaks on challenger strategy, fundraising and SME banking. They debate profitability, infrastructure depth, embedded finance, Revolut’s operational edge, and where real power sits in modern banking.

Denise Johansson, Co-founder and CEO of Enfuce, advocates for a cultural approach to modernization, emphasizing that transformation is about more than just technology. Andy Sturrock, CTO of Atom Bank, highlights the agility of cloud-native systems, enabling quicker experimentation. Richard Davies, CEO of Allica Bank, discusses strategies for serving established SMEs and argues that legacy banks often react too slowly to competition. The trio passionately debates whether incumbents can catch up to neobanks, stressing that courage and customer focus are essential for success.

Denise Johansson, co-founder and co-CEO of Enfuce, shares insights into payments innovation and compliance, while Richard Davies, CEO of Allica Bank, discusses the evolving role of high street branches for SMEs. They tackle Nationwide's commitment to keeping branches open, debate the necessity of physical locations in the digital age, and explore Visa's trials of stablecoin payouts as a fast payment solution. Additionally, they examine the partnership between Revolut and Booking.com, weighing its implications for travelers and loyalty rewards.