Unleashing Fintech Magic Within: Illuminating the Role of Internal Departments within Banking
Fintech Symphony: Tech Wizardry Beyond Apps | Inside Banking's Fintech Ballet | Unseen Heroes of Fintech | Navigating the Internal Frontier
Executive Summary
This serves as a continuation of a series presenting a product managers view on fintech. It introduces fintech through a traditional lens emphasizing its roots in banking and financial institutions.
It takes a turn by proposing an alternative perspective that centers on the critical role played by underlying technology in internal departments within banking institutions.
By navigating potential criticisms and presenting alternative perspectives, this exploration contributes to a more refined understanding of fintech's nuanced applications within the banking sector, particularly within its internal departments.
Faced with increasing pressure to improve employee performance and service delivery of the audit department, banking executives gather in a boardroom to collaboratively work through procurement lists to identify potential financial technology vendors.
The product manager experiences a moment of realization - fintech is not just about technology; it's about the ecosystem—the collaboration between departments, each playing a vital role. From frontline tellers to the back-office techies, it's a symphony of teamwork making the fintech dream work.
This essay, a part of a series from a product manager's viewpoint, dives into fintech by first exploring its traditional roots in banking and financial institutions. It however takes a distinctive turn by proposing a nuanced perspective that delves deeper into the pivotal role played by technology in internal departments within financial institutions.
Beyond external services, the alternative view presented here underscores the indispensable need for technological capabilities within the internal infrastructure of banking institutions.
Defining Fintech
When someone says Fintech, they usually are referring to a broad term encapsulating technology's role in enhancing financial services for both businesses and consumers. This definition poses a challenge in precise definition and regulatory scope due to the multifaceted nature of financial technology.
Fintech isn't just about flashy apps or slick online interfaces. It's about the digital magic happening behind the scenes, especially within halls of some of our favorite banks. We're talking about internal departments that are the unsung heroes, using tech to make sure the financial gears keep turning smoothly.1
To borrow a few thoughts from the Financial Stability Board (FSB), fintech isn't just a fancy label; it's a badge of honor for all things tech that jazz up financial services. From game changing business models, applications, processes, or products significantly impacting the way financial services are delivered.
Recognizing the diverse range of innovations falling under the umbrella of Fintech these days, the FSB says, "Hey, we need some rules here!". There has been a need at a global level for emphasis on specificity, drawing lines in the sand in defining and regulating individual technologies.
To tackle this fintech maze, the FSB suggests categorizing Fintech developments based on their primary economic functions. This categorization serves two essential purposes:
Firstly, it allows for a thorough examination of the financial stability implications associated with Fintech, particularly concerning its impact on the existing financial market structure.
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, it shifts the analytical attention towards the actions and results of Fintech innovations, avoiding an exclusive focus on the service providers or the underlying technologies. It's like watching a magic show not to see the magician but to be amazed by the tricks.
Internal departments
This nuanced take on fintech isn't just about flashy apps and user interfaces. It's about acknowledging the evolving landscape, where the real action happens behind the scenes. This approach highlights how our focus on internal departments shapes the market dynamics and stability of the fintech realm, challenging the traditional external-facing narrative.
Beyond External-Facing Services:
Sure, we all love the fintech apps that make our lives easier, but what about the wizards working behind closed doors? From the teller counting cash to the tech whiz in the auditing department. These internal wizards are weaving their technological spells to ensure every penny is where it should be and doing what it's supposed to do2.
Efficiency through Technology:
Now, let's get our hands dirty.
Internal fintech applications aren't about making your app experience smoother; they're about keeping the financial engine well-oiled. Imagine credit departments armed with robo-advisors, auditing teams dancing with RegTech, and risk management wizards using AI to enhance decision-making processes.
In this backstage tech ballet, the focus shifts from flashy customer interactions to the intricate processes that uphold the stability of financial institutions. It's not just about making things pretty; it's about making things work seamlessly.
Conclusion
In the end, fintech is more than a buzzword or an app on your phone. It's the unsung heroes within the bank, armed with cutting-edge tech, ensuring your financial world runs like clockwork.
So, next time you pass by the auditing department, give them a nod; they're the real magicians making fintech magic happen within the walls of your favorite bank.
Defining fintech can be like catching smoke with your bare hands. The challenge lies in understanding where the fintech magic begins and ends. But by including internal departments, we're breaking free from those limitations and embracing the full spectrum of financial tech wizardry.
A) The Tech Overlap Debate: The contention lies in the specialized technological arsenal wielded by these departments. Tailored explicitly for the intricate financial nuances, this technology goes beyond conventional applications, creating a realm where complexity is not a hindrance but a strategic advantage.
B) Sure, tech is everywhere, but not every sector has an auditing department with fancy tech. By zooming in on the unique tech challenges within banking departments, we can see how fintech is not just a general tech wave; it's a specialized force carving its own path.