Is partnering with Big Tech an opportunity for banks?

The recent wave of market entrants in the financial services industry, from small fintechs to the world’s largest technology companies, is reshaping the space and incentivizing incumbent financial institutions to adapt. 

New fintech players are getting ahead by moving quickly to address consumers’ specific needs. This puts banks in a position where their legacy solutions are not enough to drive sustained growth. 

So, what is the way forward? 

One way banks could innovate faster is essentially to copy what fintechs do and partner with companies that complement their services to broaden their customer reach. Many businesses are looking to add finance capabilities to their own platforms, including Big Tech companies — Apple, Facebook, Google, Amazon and Microsoft.

Big Tech has a competitive advantage in terms of customer acquisition, creating great user experiences and innovative products that attract customers. In turn, banks are skilled at understanding compliance, treasury and credit risk management, which are difficult tasks for Big Tech companies. 

However, from the banks’ perspective, the decision to partner with Big Tech companies is not really a straightforward one. There are pros and cons, and each bank will decide if and what partnership would make the most sense for its business model. 

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