BANKING.UPDATE JUNE/JULY 2018
> How is this relevant to the Qatari market? While digital-only bank features will be increasingly common also in Qatar, it's obvious that customers' trust in full-fledged banks is still prevailing.
> How is this relevant to the Qatari market? With its large expatriate population, money transfers to global destinations play a major role in Qatar. As the example shows, innovations may come not just from the banks themselves, but also from fintech partners.
> How is this relevant to the Qatari market? The startup scene in Qatar is emerging, and presents local banks with an opportunity to establish strong links that they will benefit from during later stages, once innovative solutions have been developed.
Monzo's Losses Quadruple Despite Customer Numbers Surging Ahead The UK's 'bank of the future' reports surging customer numbers but also widens losses amid increased investments. The digital bank has acquired 750,000 customers with their numbers expected to reach 'millions' by 2019. One of the challenges affecting results is the fact that 80% of customers don't use it to deposit their salaries. https://www.ftadviser.com/investments/2018/07/02/di gital-bank-monzo-s-losses-more-than-quadruple/
Fintech Unicorn TransferWise Partners with a Major Bank The company specialising in money transfers around the world and challenging traditional banks with lower fees and more advantageous exchange rates has announced that it would partner with the French Groupe BPCE. The aim is to offer money transfer services to the group's customers by integrating these in its mobile apps. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/04/transferwisestrikes-partnership-with-first-major-bank-bpce.html
Canadian Companies CDPQ and Sun Life Launch a Fintech Venture Capital Fund The newly established fund is backed by a number of financial institutions and has the aim to provide capital to innovative fintech companies in their early stages. Starting with a volume of $75m that could be raised to $100m in the coming months, it will provide seed financing of up to $2m in order to develop innovative solutions that could be of benefit to financial companies. https://business.financialpost.com/news/fpstreet/caisse-sun-life-backing-new-75-million-fintechventure-capital-fund
> How is this relevant to the Qatari market? Qatar has the highest labour participation rate of all Gulf states when it comes to women. It's an important segment to focus on, especially as many women also tend to pursue entrepreneurial activities.
BMO Bank of Montreal to Invest $3bn in Women-owned Businesses The bank has announced it would make the amount of $3bn available as capital over the coming three years. Its research report conducted recently identified access to capital as one of the most significant hurdles faced by aspiring female entrepreneurs. https://canada.businesschief.com/finance/2724/BMOpledges-to-invest-3bn-in-women-owned-businesses
Islandsbanki Says You Better Run The Icelandic bank is partner of the Reykjavik City Marathon, a charity event that allows people to run for a good cause. To support participation, the bank has launched a creative campaign by teaming up with 20 famous Icelandic actors who re-enacted famous film scenes that required them to run. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_wBmXLUpFw > How is this relevant to the Qatari market? Partnering with local personalities is a way to bring a finance brand closer to its audiences, and charitable events provide a great opportunity to connect with local communities.
> How is this relevant to the Qatari market? Due to Qatar's diverse population, there are multiple customer segments in the market with different needs. Using advanced predictive personalisation and testing various approaches in digital would therefore make sense in the local context.
Chime Bank Drives Conversions by Using AI The bank has been using AI-powered predictive personalisation in order to increase conversions. Just within 3 months the team was able to obtain findings on messages that resonate with various segments, which would normally take more than 9 years using the traditional A/B test approach. https://thefinancialbrand.com/73355/predictiveanalytics-digital-banking-website-accounts/
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