INTRODUCTION:-
Vicky: I remember a time when payments only mattered at checkout. That is no longer the case.
Adit: As the pandemic continues to accelerate digitization efforts and more goods and services move online, payments are increasingly central to every organization's decision-making.
Yousif: Transforming from a secondary concern into a primary driver of business and operational strategy.
Lucia: We are calling this payment revolution Fast Forward.
And because of its speed and scale...
Alison: We want to help you stay ahead.
Vicky: So we've identified the five major payment trends to watch.
Adit: As we all fast forward into the future.
Vicky: Digital as a culture.
Lucia: Anything-as-a-service.
Adit: Payments as a revenue driver.
Vicky: Aligning working capital and liquidity.
Adit: And addressing ESG agendas.
Yousif: With the fastest fixes already implemented, companies are starting to embed digital as a core part of their DNA. And rather than seeing digital transformation as a series of siloed process changes, they're seeing it as a connected journey to digital maturity.
Alison: And at JP Morgan, we identify three key stages to that journey.
Yousif: First, the discovery stage. Where companies realize that they need to digitize, moving away from manual paper-based functions to digital automatic solutions. Identifying the gaps that they have in their processes and technology today.
Alison: Second, the transformation stage. Where companies are solidifying and enhancing their digital ecosystem with flexibility, agility, and superior functionality, often through APIs.
Lucia: We see many companies taking on large transformation initiatives and the leaders really pulling themselves away from the pack.
Adit: And the forward looking stage. Where companies are enjoying the results of their investments with a highly integrated and embedded digital ecosystem
Lucia: that leverages data to inform and be predictive about decisions to be made.
And deploy emerging technology use cases like AI, blockchain, and programmable money.
Alison: Anything-as-a-service allows goods or products to be offered as a service without requiring ownership. And young, digitally-driven companies are taking note.
Adit: Challenging traditional companies by meeting consumer demand for increased personalization, flexibility, and convenience.
Yousif: And creating new revenue opportunities by catering to niche markets with high growth rates. And as they grow, integrating with other anything-as-a-service into ecosystems and platform of platforms. As the super apps of Asia have done and other regions are quickly following.
Lucia: Anything-as-a-service also applies to B2B industries, allowing traditional hardware-focused companies to pivot and explore new revenue streams that are data-based or software-based. Still even as anything-as-a-service gains momentum across industries. There are implications.
Alison: Every function in a business must collaborate and successfully deliver on strategy. And for anything-as-a-service, payments are vital. Thanks to the growth of embedded payments and how the different as-a-service models integrate into an organization's ecosystem, payments often serve as a single connector.
Mario: Models like anything-as-a-service also show that payments are no longer just payments. That businesses can leverage payments to drive growth.
Vicky: So say for instance, a B2B company wants to increase margins and share by pivoting to direct-to-consumer offerings. They're going to need infrastructure to accept consumer payments, such as credit cards or even new payment types like Venmo or Apple Pay.
Adit: Or say a gig worker and a creator platform wants to use real-time payout offerings as a recruiting tool and competitive advantage.
Lucia: They'll need to be able to pay workers on delivery rather than on a weekly or monthly basis to offer that appealing alternative to incumbent brands
Mario: Still it's impossible at talk about the first three trends without talking about working capital and liquidity strategies.
As payments take on a more prominent role, treasury teams will feel the implications.
Vicky: Working capital and liquidity has always been a perennial priority and trend for treasurers. And now more than ever, organizations must align their working capital and liquidity strategies to support the new direction and strategy for their overall business. For instance, helping suppliers get paid faster may require new lending options like commercial cards to manage cash flow.
Mario: And as companies shift into new business areas, it will likely involve spinouts and acquisition, especially as measure and acquisition activity continues to rise.
Vicky: Which drives a need to maximize access to available cash and ongoing focus on optimizing cash processes to maintain the resiliency of operations.
Marco: Perhaps the most significant theme that emerged in this year's trends is sustainability.
Yousif: And that is especially clear with the emergence of environmental, social and governance considerations at the top of the agenda, also known as ESG.
Alison: At JP Morgan, we believe that sustainable growth is inclusive growth, and we recognize that companies have to take care of their communities and employees.
Vicky: This is reflected in the work we do, the partners we choose, and the terms that we establish with them. With social consciousness increasing global globally, companies that fail to demonstrate inclusivity, sustainability considerations and governance will likely be penalized by the markets and the consumers.
Yousif: Increasingly, the ESG agendas of an overall organization are being pushed down from the C-suite and executive level to the individual functions and teams, including treasury, payments and finance.
Marco: And these teams are actively working with their partners to see how they can incorporate ESG and advance those agendas into their day in day out operations.
OUTRO -
Lucia: Together these five trends show how companies will need to shift gears to meet the speed and scale of the future.
Lucia: Accelerating digitization.
Alison: Leveraging technology.
Vicky: Driving sustainable growth.
Adit: Revolutionizing payments
Marco: and embracing connectivity.
Vicky: To fast forward to continued success.
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