Welcome to the latest episode of At the Forefront: Fintech Conversations!
To learn more about this podcast and explore our episode archive, click here.
In this episode, Forefront VP and Head of Content Sam Belden sits down with Ronan Donohue, Founder & Managing Partner of Q4 Capital Advisors, to discuss how the traditional banking world is being transformed by innovative technologies like AI. Ronan and Sam consider the potential of AI, the risks that it may pose to the industry, implications for the hiring landscape and more.
First, Ronan and Sam set the scene by discussing how the 2023 collapses of Credit Suisse, Silicon Valley Bank and other prominent institutions were caused in part by the realities of modern banking. Ronan describes how the digitization of banking – as well as what he terms the “digitization of panic” – enabled a rapid spread of information, causing sudden deposit flights in the wake of the news. Trending conversations on social media also led to share prices collapsing. In Ronan’s opinion, this pivotal year in banking was the first big test for the newly digitized global financial landscape, and the results were revealing.
Sam and Ronan go on to discuss emerging developments in the world of fintech – how they are transforming the old world of banking and the opportunities and risks they pose. Ronan highlights some potential threats of AI, some of which we’ve already seen in practice – deepfake and voice cloning technology, spamming, rapid dissemination of misinformation and the like. As financial markets are interlinked with geopolitics – impacted by everything from natural disasters to political appointments – digitization and AI in particular have the potential to exert unprecedented influence over peoples’ opinions and, by extension, the markets at large.
On the flipside, Ronan states that most of these concerns can also be remedied by technology. For example, AI’s ability to parse out small changes within a set of information can be used to identify and filter phishing emails or false websites. AI will also increase productivity across the workforce, enabling firms to take on more clients while still delivering quality service.
Along those lines, Ronan and Sam also touch on how AI will cause an industry-wide evolution of job roles. AI is a disruptor, Ronan states, so the technology itself won’t take jobs or displace employees. Instead, those who learn how to use AI efficiently will have an edge over those who do not adapt. In the next few years, he predicts, we’ll become more familiar with this concept of “augmented working,” encountering more advanced tools in our day-to-day workflows. AI even has the potential to create new job opportunities for those able to provide intelligent inputs, as evidenced by the emergence of roles like prompt engineers.
To learn more about Q4 Capital Advisors’ consulting services, visit their website.
See below for a breakdown of what was discussed. Happy listening!
Timestamps:
1:35 – How fintech innovation may have played into the banking turmoil of 2023
5:25 – Potential downsides of AI for banks and other capital markets stakeholders
12:20 – The potential impact of AI on job roles in banking
17:15 – Other examples of digital transformation in financial services and beyond
