Consumer fintech is a game of evolving convenience. The humble credit card strip gave way to contactless payments on the mobile phone. Lining up at the bank is a relic of the past, with personal accounts having been all but digitized. Financial needs are among the top priorities of everyday consumers, which makes fintech an industry constantly ripe for innovation.
Incentivizing the race to transform the financial sector is the sheer scale of the market. In a world where commuters can use mobile pay to tap into public transit and credit cards have rewards built around cryptocurrency, the applications seem limitless. The field’s innovative potential also appeals to ambitious candidates seeking to put their skills to the test, adding to its high-growth and fast-paced environment.
Industry leaders, such as Upgrade CEO Renaud Laplanche, find it essential to keep a constant finger on the pulse of market trends. Among general observations on the rise of mobile payment adoption, he’s specifically eyeing the concept of all-in-one platforms popular in countries abroad. “This trend will usher in super apps, strengthening the integration between commerce, payments and credit,” he said.
Others, like Chime’s Siddhi Soman, director of engineering, sees underlying seismic shifts in how financial technology is built. The goal of the company — prioritizing the needs of consumers — doesn’t change, but the digitization of products can provide an improved financial ecosystem for its members.
“To say we are starting to see rapid innovations at the intersection of automation and personalized member experiences would be an understatement,” she said. “Across the industry, we’re seeing the rise of chatGPT, intelligent systems, proactive support experiences and more — and this is just the beginning.”
Financial tech leaders are always looking ahead — and 2023 is no exception. For a closer look at what’s piquing their visionary insight, Built In SF sat down with Laplanche and Soman for their take on fintech’s evolutionary trajectory.
Upgrade offers fintech products that make financial goals more attainable for its customers, from personal loans and an array of rewards-based cards to more accessible checking and savings accounts.
Fintech is an industry ripe with opportunities for innovation. What’s a new trend or evolution in the industry that you’re keeping a close eye on?
We’re going to see more product innovation at the intersection of credit and payments. Consumers are now adopting mobile payments faster than they did in the last 10 years. This change opens the door to a tighter integration between merchants, payment apps and credit providers. We’ve seen this play out in the Buy Now, Pay Later model which captured a sizable share of e-commerce and m-commerce. The same trend will now play out in physical stores.
What impact will this trend have on the industry as a whole or, more specifically, on Upgrade and the work your team is doing?
It remains to be seen whether U.S. super apps will also include chat and other social features like we’ve seen in Asia. We might see a distinct flavor of super apps in North America that are fully dedicated to buying products and services you can’t currently buy on platforms like Amazon, such as travel and automobiles. To make this happen, fintech companies — and Upgrade in particular — will need to partner with goods and service providers outside our industry.
Consumers are now adopting mobile payments faster than they did in the last 10 years.”
Tell us about some of the innovative work your team is doing. What’s a project you or your team worked on recently that really embodies your vision for the future of fintech?
A few months ago, we launched an innovative product that we believe can further enable the emergence of super apps: Upgrade OneCard. This dual debit and credit card gives users a single card to pay for all their expenses. Users can select “pay now” to debit small everyday purchases directly from their bank account, or “pay later” to spread payments for larger purchases over several months. The card can also be easily provisioned in Apple Pay or Google Pay for mobile payment. By offering our customers this type of financial flexibility, we empower them to make responsible decisions while reducing the burden of larger purchases.
Chime is a fintech company that offers banking services that prioritizes the customer experience. By partnering with regional banks, the company’s online banking model lets its members avoid overdraft fees, minimum balance requirements and monthly subscriptions.
Fintech is an industry ripe with opportunities for innovation. What’s a new trend or evolution in the industry that you’re keeping a close eye on?
Fintech is definitely ripe for transformation, and at Chime, we’re excited to be at the forefront of the industry. I believe that intelligent automation and proactive, personalized member experiences are both areas brimming with innovation and new opportunities. It’s the technological advances in artificial intelligence, coupled with the continued focus on member delight, that have led to the advent of this trend.
As a company constantly focused on digitizing the finance industry, providing seamless customer interactions and improving operational efficiency, we at Chime know that these trends will lead to wins all around — and make fintech an even more promising space for innovators and customers alike.
What impact will this trend have on the industry as a whole or, more specifically, on Chime and the work your team is doing?
To say we are starting to see rapid innovations at the intersection of automation and personalized member experiences would be an understatement. Across the industry, we’re seeing the rise of chatGPT, intelligent systems, proactive support experiences and more — and this is just the beginning.
While Chime is always monitoring trends and adopting new innovations, our focus will always be on our customers. To that end, our team is already working on several industry-defining member support and dispute experiences, with a focus on increasingly delightful member interactions.
To say we are starting to see rapid innovations at the intersection of automation and personalized member experiences would be an understatement.”
Tell us about some of the innovative work your team is doing. What’s a project you or your team worked on recently that really embodies your vision for the future of fintech?
Recently, Chime’s engineering team has tackled chatbots, as well as conversational and comprehensive member support backed by predictive recommendations that create a digital, guided experience for our members.
They’ve also worked on delivering and improving automated dispute filing and resolution experiences for our members so that any issues can be resolved faster and more securely. We provide proactive member resolution via pending and multiple transaction dispute support. With pending transaction dispute support, which we are one of the first in our industry to offer, we enable our members to dispute a transaction before it is cleared or complete. This way, if members see an issue, they don’t have to wait for a transaction to settle before disputing it.
With multiple transaction dispute support, members can file a dispute for multiple transactions with the same merchant in one go instead of filing separate disputes. Both of these mechanisms help our members resolve issues faster and set us apart from other banking services.
