Sibos: The world in which we can act as independent units “evaporates from us”
The future of the financial services ecosystem will be digital and data-driven, but most importantly, it will be interconnected, according to Kahina Van Dyke, global head of digital channels and data analytics, Standard Chartered.
During the Sibos conference, Dyke emphasized: “The world in which we have the opportunity to be more digital or more innovative is over. We can no longer act as individual, self-contained units behind borders or within industries or within companies – this world is evaporating from us as global trade, trade and even health measures must be coordinated in order to be successful. ”
According to Dyke, networked real-time digitization is the new basis for how the industry will move and interact in this environment. Faced with this great transformation, transformational leadership must be embraced.
“This is about people, not technology. Technology is a tool for us, but it’s really about understanding that disruption is no longer something to be afraid of or to prepare for in an emergency. It’s the norm, ”confirmed Dyke.
She continued: “Traditionally, the banking industry has been conservative and resistant to big changes. But now the industry has to be at the forefront of this change management and innovation. Institutions and banks with an international presence such as Standard Chartered are best positioned to drive this change. “
For example, Standard Chartered has accelerated its investments in the expanded platform. While platform investments require technology tools and data dashboards, people must come first and invest in people.
Dyke explained: “We have to see ourselves as ‘always on’ in the virtual world, with constant availability for our customers and for our employees in order to see everything they are working on with us via an online service.” [Standard Chartered] in a simple and transparent way. We have seen that the vast majority of our customers have adopted our digital channels. “
“Digital-first and data-driven future means that we are available at any time and also unlock opportunities in the emerging markets.”
The focus on emerging markets offers some of the greatest rewards and growth opportunities in the world, and they have been underinvested in the past. In Africa alone, Standard Chartered has won over 700,000 new customers through its digital channels and 98 percent of customers are now acquired digitally.
“All of this with sustainability in mind, as it is absolutely critical to everything we do,” added Dyke.
Dyke suggested that a connected world needs transformative leadership and the industry needs to operationalize diversity. It has to be anchored in a company’s DNA, it could be the world’s greatest opportunity right now.
Meanwhile, Richard Brown, Chief Technology Officer, R3, spoke about the importance of confidential data processing. He said: “We have spent decades as an industry that connects everyone and everything, which has created immense utility and value.”
However, Brown found that the industry had failed to install adequate technological safeguards for information between systems.
“We want to know that the information we share, which may be our own, is protected and that the third party will only use it for the agreed purposes, but there is nothing technological that can enforce this,” explains Brown.
With businesses in this position, there are three main approaches that Brown finds unsatisfactory. One approach involves cleaning and modifying the data to simply eliminate the more sensitive fields. In addition, this approach only involves sending aggregated information or redacted information that can protect sensitive information.
“But the less you send, the less value you get in return, of course. And there’s a good reason to share data; Data is the lifeblood of today’s economy, ”said Brown.
The second approach may be to employ lawyers, accountants, and auditors to oversee a firm’s controls and processes. Brown suggested that this is “a very heavyweight yet soft approach because there is no technology to help you”.
By far the greatest approach people take, but also almost the most insidious, according to Brown, is simply not to share certain classes of data. Brown stated, “There are opportunities that companies fail to pursue, and there is some value that we cannot achieve because they believe it is too dangerous to share that information with anyone.”
Brown concluded that the problem is viewed as the transaction monitoring problem. A company has an obligation to know its customers and to understand what is happening.
“And yet you don’t see where the money is coming upstream from, you don’t see where it flows downstream, you just see the piece of the puzzle; There is a whole landscape of transactions and all you have is a small lamppost to light your part. ”
“Imagine if you could see the whole thing. Imagine how much easier it would be to get your job done and how many more examples of fraud or wrongdoing you could uncover. But to do that, of course, a company would have to aggregate this data, and it would have to be pooled and then only think of the greatest risk if that company is compromised or has a breakaway employee, it’s almost unthinkable.
“But because of this problem, it’s unthinkable that when you share data with third parties, you have no technological control over what they can do with it.”
According to Brown, it’s about that tantalizing window between now and the full adoption of this technology. He pondered, “The future is here, it’s just unevenly distributed, and by the time it’s in place for everyone, I believe this has been a really big opportunity for those companies that are the first to adopt it.”
Brown highlighted the companies that are taking this opportunity to be the only company in the market to offer a service that can prove to its customers that their data is secure.
“My recommendation is therefore to put confidential data processing at the top of your list of technologies that you need to study or to talk to your IT or CTO department. In a couple of years it will be about table inserts, but it’s a real opportunity if you take it today, ”concluded Brown.
