Not one day goes by without the term “Fintech” appearing on the agenda of a conference, on newspaper titles, in coffee-break chats. Its definition remains however quite abstract for many. Whereas the root of the word itself is quite clear – a contraction of “Finance” and “Technology”- its every-day applications are still quite few. Among these we can mention the payment applications such as “Twint” of Postfinance or “Paymit” of UBS and the ZKB, as well as Robo-advisors in wealth management used by Truewealth in Zurich.
The basis of a new industry, or the development of a sector of it, is largely dependent on the regulatory environment that controls it. As an example, the publication, on December 21st, 2015 of the FINMA’s project of circular concerning “Video and online identification” was well received by the main actors of the market and shows the intention of the regulator to act proactively. The fact that this measure will come into force in March 2016 reinforces this feeling.
The implementation of this certification will complete the existing online onboarding procedures for clients and will increase the digitalization of banking processes. The question is, how will the first visual contact with the client be taken care of (Skype, Facebook, Twitter, …?). More on the next batch.
Translation: Irène Olivet-Mircea