Embedded finance: The move towards invisible banking

whitePaper | July 3, 2022

Founded in 1896, Barclays is among the world's oldest banks and enjoys the patronage of some of Europe's most profitable corporations. In 2021, Barclays claimed over 48 million customers, amassed over its 120+ year history. On the other hand, Revolut is a UK neobank that has acquired over 15 million account holders in less than a decade since its founding. These numbers are illustrative of a larger shift in the global banking system, with agile, digitally empowered financial service providers making inroads into mainstream banking territory. Currently, traditional banks, with their large product and service portfolios and legions of loyal customers, still hold the lion's share of the European banking market.

whitePaper | October 6, 2022

Financial services are undergoing a shift today that is changing the face of banking. Gone are the days of monolithic banking, in which products and services are siloed off from each other, and banks manage their own mainframes. The future of banking is digital, and this demands agile, instant and intelligent IT infrastructure. Established banks will no longer be expected to act alone in developing and distributing products. New models like open banking and real-time payments incentivize banks to collaborate with partners, new start-ups and established players within and beyond the financial services industry. But this future path also poses risks, as any potential collaborator could also be a competitor. Established banks will have to think more like fintechs and challenger banks, while continuing to ensure security, compliance and a full suite of services for consumers and businesses alike.

whitePaper | August 24, 2022

India's smartphone boom proved conducive for the rise of digital payments. The government-sanctioned push toward a unified payment interface led to over two billion digital transactions in April 2021, just shy of Rs 5 lakh crore. Correspondingly, this also eased access to short-term, low interest credit - reflected in a 220 % jump in offerings such as buy-now-pay-later (BNPL). BNPL products can potentially help plug the Rs. 25 trillion credit gap in the micro, small and medium (MSME) segment, considered high-risk by legacy lenders.

whitePaper | March 22, 2023

It’s been said that “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” The adage certainly applies to banking crises in the US: every crisis, however unique the cause, has typically been followed by a new wave of regulations. This trend is likely to continue in the wake of the current crisis. In fact, reporting from the Wall Street Journal and other sources indicates that the Federal Reserve and other banking regulators are already in discussions about changes to the US regulatory regime, especially for midsize banks.

whitePaper | August 25, 2022

The exit whether it’s an initial public offering (IPO), being absorbed into a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), or an outright sale is now a strategic goal for many private company executive teams. With many private equity funds nearing the end of their holding period, finance professionals are increasingly being relied on to navigate the complicated liquidity event and provide the critical oversight needed when developing a company’s new internal control environment.

whitePaper | March 19, 2022

Both consumer and business payments have been moving full steam ahead, catapulted by innovations like big data, open banking, and other advancements in technology. Artificial intelligence (AI) has played a big role in the payments evolution thus far and will continue to be a main player moving forward. IDC projects that financial services companies will spend $11 billion on artificial intelligence next year. While financial services and payments certainly stand to benefit from the AI revolution, all industries will experience benefits from these developments. Accenture reports that AI can boost rates of profitability by 38% on average by 2035 and could lead to an economic boost of $14 trillion among 16 industries across 12 economies by that time, too