In the months following the declaration of COVID-19 as a pandemic and the ensuing lockdown measures that forced new ways of working, the financial technology (fintech) industry has seen an accelerated uptake of solutions. With offices closed and many working from home, financial services customers have had to rely on digital solutions. This has meant greater use of fintech services, a trend that may carry over into the post-pandemic world.
Even before the pandemic, the use of digital financial solutions was quite steady. However, with the crisis, the pace of adoption has accelerated in ways that few would have imagined. For fintech start-ups and entrepreneurs such as Razi Salih, what was once an opportunity has become a necessity. Mr Salih has over a decade of experience in the fintech sector, specifically working on projects that touch on blockchain, e-commerce payment solutions, and licensing.
From Legacy to New Age Systems
Given the increased need for digital solutions, financial services firms are likely to consider migrating from legacy technology systems to newer technologies. Cloud-based platforms, for example, could gain more popularity and remain the norm even when the pandemic is brought under control. Individuals who’ve gotten used to managing their financial matters remotely will likely want to retain this level of control and convenience.
Intelligent Automation
During the pandemic, enterprise IT infrastructures have dealt with increased demand. This demand has not been addressed proportionately, as many businesses have had to reduce their service desk capacity. This has led to a reliance on IT engineers to solve issues, underlying a need for helpdesk personnel to have IT technical skills. Where adding skilled personnel may take time, companies are being encouraged to consider Intelligent Automation (IA), which is immune to redundancies and can help enterprises address their common issues reliably and effectively.
Fraud Prevention
The shift to increased digital transactions has its risks, chief among them fraudsters who are keen to compromise systems and users. Fintech companies realise the potential damage that fraud can inflict, leading them to use machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) to help analyse user behaviour and chart trends. Using AI, these companies can identify fraudulent activities and respond in real-time to suspected cases. All of this is possible due to the abundance of data being passed through fintech systems, with its analysis helping to predict fraud patterns.
The COVID-19 pandemic has only accelerated a trend that was steadily gathering steam, as more customers worldwide embraced digital banking. For fintech companies, the main differentiator will remain quality of service.