After 20 years in sponsor banking, Pathward president Anthony Sharett argues that successful bank-fintech partnerships require the right people, multi-threaded opportunities, and true co-creation.
While over 100 banks now call themselves sponsor banks, Suro believes the next frontier lies in AI, embedded finance, and educating all stakeholders about what's possible.
We dive into two stories. First, how Trump's proposed credit card rate cap benefits fintechs like Affirm and Bilt, who target consumers seeking alternative credit sources.
Second, Amazon and Perplexity clash over AI shopping agents, revealing uncertainty about guardrails and customer relationship ownership in agentic commerce.
Customers are redirecting their day-to-day financial transactions elsewhere, while keeping their old accounts on the books.
Although some banks pick up early signals yet miss the issue before it fully surfaces, fintechs and neobanks, on the other hand, see this same issue as a compounding opportunity.
