My first three months as CEO of a forward-thinking, fast-paced financial marketplace, have shown me quite a few interesting perspectives about the changing world of finance we operate in

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Circa 2016:  In London for a conference, I scanned my emails, before heading into the last meeting for the day. I was completing a personal property transfer in Australia, my home for 25 years. All my transactions and approvals had happened online and my eyes were looking out for an e-mail from my bank, telling me it was done. And there it was! I wasn’t even in the country when the asset changed hands. Not much of a surprise, as I couldn’t recall the last time I visited the bank branch in the past decade.

2017: Having recently joined as CEO of BankBazaar, Singapore was my new home. Busy completing initial financial formalities, I was handed over a returned bank document on mail one day. My e-signature had not been accepted. I had to be present in person to sign a piece of paper.

Interesting, I thought! For this is exactly what we are going to change in the next few years. Create a world of finance that is paperless and cashless.

Personal anecdotes aside, my first three months as CEO of a forward-thinking, fast-paced financial marketplace, have shown me quite a few interesting perspectives about the changing world of finance we operate in. The five Cs, if you will, that govern the way this game is played.

Consumer needs are changing and products need to keep pace

The consumer of today and tomorrow does not want snaking queues, unnecessary delays, multiple bank branch visits and archaic products. More aware about the available choices out there, consumers scout around before deciding on the financial product they want to purchase. I have realised that today’s consumer is a value-seeker and that financial marketplaces will become the go-to sites in the future. It has happened across all retail products, and it is only a matter of time before we see it play out significantly for financial products.

Also read: Will crypto, IoT and smart contracts be the solution to a cashless Singapore?

Offering a compelling proposition

In an increasingly competitive landscape, it is important to go beyond good product offerings. More agile, customer-centric, technologically advanced — as an online financial marketplace we offer consumers a better experience by providing more choice, matching them to suitable products based on their profile and enabling faster approvals. It is heartening to see that banks recognise this. In these three months alone, multiple international and local banks have signed us on. And this has come in as a very pleasant surprise! While I did anticipate doors to open, I had no precedence to show me that financial institutions were so keen and willing. And it is an association that will help us work together in creating the financial ecosystem of the future.

Catalysts for change

Earlier, the route taken to buying a financial product was fairly straight-forward — you were most likely sold to or when you actively searched for one, you headed to your bank branch. That is all changing and how! There is an active intent to buy, a need to search and compare to find the best the products.

At BankBazaar, we are not a comparison site alone, we have built a platform that takes the consumer through the entire journey of comparing products, finding the right one and getting an in-principle approval for the product or service from the financial institution.

Also read: A shift toward a cashless society goes beyond fintech, and it requires behavioural change

For banks and similar institutions, we are a wooing site, providing them the ideal platform to get their product to match the consumer needs. We bring to them fully validated applications, having filtered through what the consumers want and what they can be offered. Approval rates for such applications are over 80%. Compare that to the approval rates from other digital channels, that hover around 1-2% or less, with the onus of the filtering process lying with the banks. In the near future, for some banks, I do see marketplaces driving over 50% of their leads. Our technology and digital marketing capability is bringing the consumer and the bank together on one platform.

Going ahead we hope to work with the regulator to gain access to consumer data, credit history, having met the highest standard of security requirement. Keeping customer-centricity at its core, when regulators, marketplaces and banks work together, the platform of the future will be created.

Talent challenges

Fintech has emerged to be a growth sector for Singapore and the region. However, this growth is fast outpacing the availability of specialised talent. In my first 100 days, this has emerged as the primary challenge. As we expand our products, offerings and markets, finding the right talent to join us in these markets is essential. We are starting to see initiatives from governments and industry bodies in the region that focus on nurturing and attracting FinTech talent. But till these efforts gain momentum, we hustle.

Capturing new markets is vital for our growth as an international financial marketplace

With a low-cost and easily scalable platform, we hope to become a well-established player in Asia Pacific in the next few years . We are starting this off by entering Malaysia in the next 2-3 months. If the first 100 days have been about consolidating our position in Singapore, the next 100 will be about entering new markets and confronting new challenges.

On the personal front, having moved from PowerPoints to spreadsheets, from strategy discussions to decision-making marathons, I am enjoying the agility and quick decision-making process. I find myself incredibly fortunate to be able to lead the organisation through its journey at such an early stage, from being a regional player to a leading international organisation.

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Featured image credit: 123RF

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