IBS Intelligence Global FinTech Interviews

Kiran Kumar, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Profinch SolutionsToo much data across banking systems is still being left unused. This leaves institutions reliant on slow manual processes to produce required reports while, at the same time, missing out on potential profitable business and product developments that can improve and expand customer experience. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence discusses the issues with Kiran Kumar, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Profinch Solutions. 

Torben Sauer, CEO, ConpendConsulting firm CGI and AI for trade finance solutions provider Conpend collaborated on a pilot programme of intelligent process automation for trade finance documents with 2 Canadian banks, Bank of Montreal and National Bank of Canada. The aim was to assist the banks with the automation of document flows to improve their trade finance operations, compliance and relationship management. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to Torben Sauer, CEO of Conpend about what the pilot project could mean for trade finance around the world.

Aaron Tilton, CEO, SmartFiUS firm SmartFi offers crypto collateralised loans to business, a product that has proved popular in the crypto mining community around the world. The firm claims to be a unique monetary system that combines monetary policy with the freedoms of cryptocurrency to create a self-sustaining open-lending platform. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to Aaron Tilton, CEO of Utah-based SmartFi. 

Phil Flood, Global Business Development Director, Regulatory & STP Services, Gresham TechnologiesIn a global landscape characterised by regulatory complexity and scrutiny, poor data management practices, manual processes and a lack of quality control all mean that data integrity is often compromised. Add in regulatory divergence between the UK and the EU and the issue of data quality is a bigger problem now than ever before. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to Phil Flood, Global Business Development Director, Regulatory & STP Services at Gresham Technologies.

Rohit Arora, CEO and Co-Founder, Biz2XA key component of Biz2X's ability to improve process efficiency for loan applications is its use of artificial intelligence to digitise and analyse customer information. Its proprietary AI/ML model powers small business lending at brands like HSBC and Popular Bank, among others. IBSi’s Reporter Gaia Lamperti asked Rohit Arora, Biz2X’s CEO and Co-Founder, about the company’s enhanced loan management system and how to balance automated processes with human intervention. 

Han Kao, Founder & CEO, Sanctor Capital In an interview with Gaia Lamperti of IBSi, Han Kao, CEO and Founder of Sanctor Capital, explored trends and risks related to the NFT space, as well as its potential to drive cryptocurrencies’ mass adoption.  With an increased amount of capital and users piling into the space, NFTs are becoming an exciting trend to watch, as it generates more and more interaction with blockchain technologies. But caution is needed as the market is not as liquid as many people think, and investors should be wary of which kind of NFTs they buy. 

James Hickman, COO, Ecospend‘Pay by bank’ is one of the key services being offered by TPPs in open banking. One such company, UK-based Ecospend, recently announced its latest partnership, with London Mutual Credit Union. However, Ecospend ought perhaps to be best known for being selected by the UK tax authority, HMRC, as the exclusive provider of API technology to the UK government for payment initiations across all HMRC’s tax regimes. In 6 months Ecospend processed over £1 billion in open banking payments in what is a first-of-its-kind contract with any government around the world. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to James Hickman, Chief Operating Officer of Ecospend

Shiran Moodley, Co-Head of Sustainable Finance, AbsaHow should Africa’s financial system encourage investment into the continent to help drive inclusive growth? Where does the responsibility for enabling a sustainable future lie and how can financial institutions and banks help ensure that no-one gets left behind? Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to Shiran Moodley, Co-Head of Sustainable Finance at Absa.

Justin Fraser, VP Commercial & Business Development, Paysafe Insurance had lagged the banking sector in embracing digital transformation. However, the sector has now woken up to the challenges of the pandemic, changing consumer attitudes, and InsurTech challengers. In a white paper entitled Putting the insurance industry back in safe hands: the role of payments in digital transformation, Paysafe delves into how the insurance world is changing and the role of payments in transforming insurance and understanding the value of payments will be a key differentiator in the battle for market share. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks with Justin Fraser, VP Commercial & Business Development of Paysafe. 

Michel Roig, VP, Head of Business Line Payments & Access, FingerprintsResearch by Fingerprints in collaboration with Kantar shows an increasing appetite for biometric payment cards among French consumers thanks to the balance of security and convenience they offer for in-store payments. The analysis shows 59% of consumers would say ‘yes’ to a biometric payment card, up 8% on a year earlier. Robin Amlôt of IBS Intelligence speaks to Michel Roig, VP, Head of Business Line Payments & Access for Fingerprints about the report’s finding and the attractions of biometric payment cards.