U.S banks closed more than 1700 branches in the year dated June 2016 to June 2017, one of the largest drops on record; more than half of U.S. customers still prefer opening an account at a a branch, when compared to the UK market which shows more than half of customers would rather open accounts digitally; leading vendors like NCR and Diebold have seen revenues drop with the branch products pointing to a decline in the importance of the branch; while branches are still looked at as important to U.S. banks bottom line the trend still points to less branches and more digital in the coming years. Source.
John Gerspach, Chief Financial Officer of Citigroup stated at an investor conference they are building the foundation which will support the launch of a national digital consumer bank launch in the next three years; the bank currently has around 700 bank branches which is far fewer than the three biggest banks. Source
Venkatesh Bala from Biz2Credit shares new ways that lenders should think about risk management. Source
Kabbage is an online lender in the small business space; today they announced they would not fund “any business that we identify as a seller of firearms or ammunition to individuals under 21 or that sell or manufacture any form of assualt-style weapon.”; according to a written statement signed by the executives, “As parents and leaders of Kabbage we simply cannot imagine the grief of families who too often have been stricken by gun violence like the tragedy in Parkland, Florida. The technology community must work to prevent these horrifying and heartbreaking events from robbing our children of their future.”; Kabbage is also supporting the Parkland survivors’ March 14 walkout and also announced charitable contributions. Source
According to sources Amazon is talking with banks such as JPMorgan Chase to build a checking-account-like product; while it is still early and the product may not see the light of day it shows Amazon’s interest in working with banks to expand into financial services. Source
Grameen America wants banks and social impact investors to help fuel a doubling of their loan portfolio in the next 5 years; most of the new money to lend will come from their inaugural Small Business Fund and the remaining amount is where they will turn to banks and social impact investors; “It's a way to appeal to impact investors who are interested in this kind of concept as opposed to pure philanthropy,” says David Gough, CFO, to American Banker when talking about the company’s shift to impact investors to fuel growth. Source.
Citi thinks startups are missing out on a big opportunity and is inviting startups to disrupt institutional banking; Citi has taken a close look at thousands of fintech startups so far and has taken a position in about 30 so far; “Contrary to the common belief, I think there is more opportunity for collaboration with fintech than disruption,” Naveed Sultan, global head of treasury and trade solutions for Citi said during a fireside chat reported by TechCrunch. “Particularly on the institutional side.” Source.
Stash is now letting customers invest in single stocks as it looks to broaden their product offerings; the company allows customers to by portions of shares for a minimum of $5; the new offering allows investors to invest in single companies as opposed to single strategies as they have with themed ETFs; the average investor on Stash is 29 years old and has a household income of $45,000 a year. Source.
Initially started as a pet project The Girl Banker blog by Natalie Bartholomew of Grand Savings Bank has caught on as an industry sensation; her blog talks about the accomplishments of women in banking; “I realized I had a voice in terms of being a woman in banking or a woman in business,” Bartholomew said to American Banker; she has discussed eventually talking about pressure women feel in the workplace and the choice between family and careers; she is also looking at monetizing her success with speaking engagements, partnerships and sponsorships. Source.
American Banker has released their inaugural “Best Fintechs to Work For” list; they highlight some of the unique perks fintech companies are offering their employees; some of the names making the list are Best Egg, PeerStreet, nChino, SmartBiz Loans, Nav, Cross River Bank, Jumio and Oportun. Source