Event highlights
Las Vegas, April 16-19 2023
Sundays are the new Monday, and it was straight to business for Nacha’s ‘Smarter Faster Payments’ attendees. Kicking off this weekend opener, J.P. Morgan’s Steve Bernstein – moderator of many panels across the event – hosted Allstate Insurance Co and Mastercard in a discussion around digital acceleration. The panel agreed that there is a real push and pull to innovate for customers… but how do you do it cost efficiently? With a focus on the bill pay experience, of course. The migration from physical checks to digital, and accounts to tokenization is an evolution happening near you.
The good, the bad, and the ugly…
…was the catchy title of another Sunday session once more featuring Steve Bernstein and Allstate Insurance Co, joined by Con Ed and Texas Capital Bank. When it comes to risk mitigation, what some believe is missing in the U.S is informing sharing between banks, common in Europe. Calling for a more proactive approach, the group discussed the need for transparency to avoid multiple frauds happening across banks – without any visibility. The issues of SMB’s tech disadvantage and the need for a payments repository were also hot topics. As neatly summed up by the panel, “There is no one silver bullet. We need various solutions for different channels”.
Real time treasury
Steve was back on stage again on Tuesday, kicking off the busiest day on the agenda. This time discussing the increasing need for real time treasury, especially as new business models are launched. PayPal Inc and Visa Inc highlighted the post-Covid requirement for treasurers to readjust capabilities to meet business needs such as process and structure changes, and new monetization opportunities.
Back to the future
‘AI’s future impact on treasury’ reflected on the core desire for machine learning to improve and revolutionize the payments ecosystem. J.P. Morgan’s Tony Wimmer said that the Firm already sees the potential for data to be analyzed at a deeper level thanks to new AI tools. Tony’s co-presenter, Tara Ashmore from Amtrak, said, “bank data is a great source of truth – we can trust it and use it as the foundation for our forecasts”. Underscoring all of this, she added, is the change mindset key to having and creating a data-driven treasury function.
Taking the fight to fraud
Neatly following on from the previous session, Wise cautioned that cost is the biggest barrier to AI tools that combat fraud. “Bad actors are using AI tools to create voice deep fakes, visual recognition… building tools to combat this type of fraud tool is expensive”. This ‘executive series’ panel, also featuring J.P. Morgan’s Tanveer Mallick, alongside Con Edison, looked to the national fraud database in the UK as a guiding light to help corporates in their quest for data transparency to fight fraud.
Collaboration and integration
There were big questions for Financial Institutions too: how are we helping fintechs do their business? How do we help them with functionality and scalability? Brian Weinstein of J.P. Morgan and Sam Aarons of Modern Treasury debated the issues during ‘FIs remain at the center of economies amid fintech disruption’. Often there is a three-way relationship between fintechs, banks and software companies, they said. Fintechs are not a threat, as long as FIs can cement partnerships and work together to integrate payment operations software.
Your wallet on wheels
In a wide-ranging session that covered everything from subscription payments to vehicles and on to parking and tolls, ‘Your wallet on wheels’ brought the next iteration of the connected car to life. The experts from Toyota Financial Services, GmbH and J.P. Morgan considered the changing consumer relationships that mobility payments are bringing about, as well as challenges in authentication and biometrics. Nonetheless, an exciting time for industry was the key takeaway from this one.
Future state 2030
What is happening right now and how can I prepare for the future? There were no bigger questions than those posed at the Future State session. J.P. Morgan’s Steve Bernstein was back for this one, citing Korean RTP as a best in class but also cautioning against a ‘waterfall approach’ globally : “each country will evolve differently and also based on consumer needs”. ADP Inc, PennyMac Loan Services and Visa Inc also shared their visions for the treasury of the future, with all agreeing that the one constant will always be the role of buyer and supplier.
Marketplace trends
‘Globalize Me: Latest trends & success stories in global payment integration’ had a lot of ground to cover: BNPL, two-sided marketplaces, digital ecosystems, regulations… the list goes on. It was a packed session, brimming with real-life examples and an excellent discussion from J.P. Morgan, Amazon, Block and RPGC. No topic was of the table, with some even venturing that friction at checkout may be beneficial as a fraud deterrent. Answers on a postcard please…
EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT:
- Molly Bloom’s inspirational presentation on the importance of betting on yourself
- Beer nerds at the afterparty
- The quirkiest fraud prevention booth in the exhibit hall… plenty to choose from!
Stay informed and stay ahead with our monthly newsletter
Receive key updates and news with relevant actionable insights and best practices — including the latest intelligence on payments trends, digital innovation, regulatory change, ESG and sustainable financing and much more.
Subscribe to THE MONTH IN…Treasury & Payments
Discover payments solutions
Whether your business is a large multinational or a small business enterprise, we can support you through every stage of growth with award-winning client service, global reach and local expertise
Discover payment solutions customized for your business
Disclaimer
J.P. Morgan is the marketing name for the Wholesale Payments business of JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and its affiliates worldwide.
The products and services described in this document are offered by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. or its affiliates subject to applicable laws and regulations and service terms. Not all products and services are available in all locations. Eligibility for particular products and services will be determined by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. or its affiliates.
