IBS Intelligence Global FinTech Interviews

Jason Blick, Director & CEO, EqibankBased in Cayman and serving corporates and HNWIs in more than 180 countries, Eqibank also offers its digital banking solution to third parties as white label banking through a BaaS solution. This means institutions not regulated as banks may offer banking services. Eqibank is also expanding into DeFi, offering a single uniform platform for DeFi products with access to bank accounts, custody, debit and credit cards. Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence spoke to Jason Blick, Director and CEO of Eqibank. The discussion begins with a review of the crypto and capital markets.

Peter Briffett, CEO and Co-Founder, WagestreamIn three years, Wagestream has scaled from a small charity-backed fintech app to a company hosting 200 employers and half a million employees, operating across the UK, Spain, Australia and United States. So how does Wagestream and so-called Earned Wage Access work? Sunniva Kolostyak speaks to Peter Briffett, CEO and Co-Founder, about ethical scaling during Covid-19 and the acquisition of Greansill-owned start-up Earnd.

Sanat Rao, Global Head and Chief Business Officer, Infosys FinacleThe technology may be available now but are people ready? Well, that depends on who and what you believe. Is the tech truly ready for us to go completely cashless – that’s a debate to be had. As for society, well in some countries, Sweden for example, there is already a cashless roadmap in place. In others, despite opportunities and potential benefits for both merchants and consumers, there is still a core of concern. One recent survey said that only 26% of Brits are in favour of going completely cashless. Sanat Rao, Global Head and Chief Business Officer, Infosys Finacle, speaks to Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence about the challenges and opportunities facing business and banks.

Nikhita Hyett, Managing Director Europe, BlueSnapIt is a truism that late payments are a threat to corporate survival but managing the payments cycle properly and replacing outdated, legacy and inefficient payments systems would improve both survivability and profitability. Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence speaks to Nikhita Hyett, Managing Director Europe of payments platform BlueSnap about the challenges businesses face and what needs to be done. The conversation also explores the shift away from one-off purchases and the surge in ‘subscription payments’ seen during the pandemic.  

Adam Coyle, Chief Executive Officer, Digital RiverThe pandemic has seen explosive growth in ecommerce, not just in domestic markets but across borders as well. Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence speaks to Adam Coyle, CEO of Digital River. Getting the back-end processing right is key in cross-border payments and that includes getting local fulfilment and local processing right from the outset. Both B2C and B2B businesses need to provide a holistic experience that includes pricing, payment channels and methods for their customers.

Michael Down, Head of Financial Services, ElasticUK financial institutions are embracing tech to innovate and grow. Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence speaks to Michael Down, Head of Financial Services, Elastic, about what needs to be done to maintain the UK’s leadership in the FinTech space through a standardised view of data, proper use of that data and the algorithms that manage it, allowing developers the freedom to innovate and create compelling products.

Gregory Perdon, Chief Investment Officer, Arbuthnot LathamGregory Perdon, Chief Investment Officer of UK private bank Arbuthnot Latham speaks to Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence about the key themes and trends in wealth management and investment. The discussion also covers how the wealth management business itself is being changed by the implementation of AI and new financial technologies. 

Hani Hagras, Chief Science Officer, TemenosEU regulators are reportedly planning tough new rules on artificial intelligence.  Hani Hagras, Chief Science Officer at Temenos believes financial institutions need to have transparency in their AI decision-making processes to be able to explain to both regulators and customers how such decisions are made. He tells Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence how this would mean banks would be in a position to ensure they detect and fix potential problems of bias, discrimination and fairness in their AI models.

Stephen Bradford, Senior Vice President EMEA, SailpointFinancial services institutions are always going to be a target for malicious attacks.  But the problem runs deeper. Many organisations don’t know what they don’t know and especially don’t know the true nature of the vulnerabilities of their systems. Robin Amlot of IBS Intelligence speaks to Steve Bradford, SVP EMEA for cybersecurity and identity specialist Sailpoint. Technology is bringing users, applications and data together, but these connections also bring more vulnerability. What needs to be done?

Ken Serdons, Chief Commercial Officer, MollieOver a year into a global pandemic, technology-driven companies have had a rare opportunity to grow – and payments processor Mollie has spent the period helping merchants of different sizes grow with them through e-commerce solutions. In this episode, Sunniva Kolostyak speaks to Ken Serdons about organisational attitudes, expansion into the UK market and a worldwide drive to online.