Banking

The Bank of England (BoE) announced on Thursday, September 17, that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had voted unanimously to leave its benchmark bank rate at 0.1 percent whilst also maintaining the target for the total stock of asset purchases under its quantitative-easing (QE) programme at £745 billion.

During its policy meeting on Thursday, September 10, the European Central Bank (ECB) decided to keep its main refinancing benchmark rate unchanged at 0 percent, along with leaving its rates on the marginal lending facility and deposit facility the same at 0.25 percent and -0.50 percent, respectively.

At its most recent monetary-policy meeting in late July, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) discussed implementing a number of monetary-policy tools to allay concerns regarding the economic outlook for the United States. And while the FOMC had already taken numerous emergency measures

Banks exist to securely enable customers to conduct their financial affairs, but this requires changes in practices as customers change. While serving older customers who are comfortable with tried-and-true methods, legacy banks are being confronted with young clients who prefer to transact via their smartphones. In our fluid, tech-driven society, providing omnichannel solutions that meet customer expectations without compromising security is crucial for all banks competing in the “new norm”.

If one word defines the last decade, it is disruptive; but if the events of 2020 so far are any indication, we “ain’t seen nothing yet”. No sector is more likely to be disrupted by the pandemic than banking; however, those that see opportunity in crisis can outmatch this major threat to their bottom lines. Resilience, adaptability and vision are must-haves for banks that choose to lead out of turmoil.

Utilising several of the new waves of disruptive technologies such as big-data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing, neobanks across the world are fundamentally transforming the very notion of banking. And given the restrictive impact that the coronavirus pandemic is having on the global population,

The pre-pandemic world had its share of risks, but they were predictable, and risk managers knew how to use data to measure and manage them. Mid-way through 2020, the finance sector finds itself thrown into a grave new world marked by great uncertainty, a reality for which it was not well prepared. Being ready for the unknowns is now a must for survival, but how can banks accomplish that feat?

Crisis forces change, and often positive, enduring change. Witness banking’s recent response to the COVID-19 crisis. The luxury of slowly unrolling digital transformation was abruptly replaced by the urgent need to provide the bulk of bank services via online or mobile channels. The future for banks lies in maximizing their omnichannel capacity, even after the crisis subsides. They need to reimagine themselves to provide the best service imaginable to customers.

Many of us are now familiar with the concept of software as a service (SaaS)—that is, the licensing and delivery model that enables users to subscribe to use-specific programmes and applications over the internet rather than having to buy them outright and install them on their computers.

The emergency-loan lifeboats thrown out to small businesses to help them stay afloat during the immediate COVID-19 fallout will need to be repaid, mainly to banks. With many businesses still struggling, defaults are guaranteed. In the UK, progress is being made on developing a debt-collection code of conduct to guide banks seeking repayments of government-guaranteed coronavirus loans. Providing already-burdened SMEs with more equity, not debt, may be the best solution.