GFT @ Money 20/20 in Amsterdam
Whilst the event officially kicked off on the Tuesday morning, Tuum and Citi Ventures teamed up to run a launch event on the Monday evening and the GFT team were delighted to join in for the networking and pre-conference discussion.
Tuum, a 4th generation core-banking platform, is an exciting offering that is winning clients with its innovative technology and flexible approach. Citi Ventures have now become a key investor of Tuum.
On Tuesday morning, after checking in and grabbing our event passes, the GFT team got busy. Meetings ranged from partner discussions, to client engagements and analyst briefings, where we were able to provide positive updates on GFT’s recent success, including the very successful launch of Salt Bank in Romania, powered by the innovative Engine by Starling.
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Transformation trends
Richard Kalas, in particular, was in hot demand regarding GFT’s partnership with Engine by Starling and he spoke on various panels and in media interviews alongside the Engine team.
From a speaker perspective on day 1, unsurprisingly it was AI that remained a key theme in many presentations, based on its potential to revolutionise everything from fraud detection to personalised financial services.
Once more, Richard participated in a studio filmed panel session talking alongside Microsoft, Mambu and Veripark on the subject of “Transformation Trends: AI in Financial Services”.
On Tuesday evening, Mambu invited the GFT team to its networking reception where we reflected together on the great momentum we're building in our partnership (Mambu is a popular 4th generation core banking platform with an impressive portfolio of clients worldwide). The evening also gave us a chance to meet a number of Mambu’s ecosystem partners.
Later, we moved nearby to join Visa and its networking reception where we met a number of Visa’s leadership team members in the EMEA region.
Core-Banking
On Wednesday, we joined Mambu’s stand as a ‘featured partner’. It was great for GFT to have a high-profile presence and continue several conversations with banks engaged in core banking transformation journeys.
A number of Wednesday’s panel discussions emphasised how embedded finance is breaking down traditional barriers and enabling new entrants to compete with established financial institutions. This trend is expected to grow, driven by advancements in API technologies and increased consumer demand for convenience and integrated services.
After a few more productive conversations, including with Google’s EMEA team, we visited a range of partner booths, notably Skaleet, an exciting core banking solution from France. Overall, there was a great feeling from core banking system partners who are seeking to collaborate more with GFT given our extensive experience and success in the core-banking space.
Wednesday evening saw the GFT team hosting Thought Machine for dinner, a chance to celebrate our successful and longstanding relationship.
Later, we felt we had to stop by Money20/20’s famous street party. This time the sun was shining, and it was fantastic to do socialise with the global banking community.
A Bright Future
Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain (DeFi) were hot topics on the last day, reflecting their growing influence in the financial landscape. A few experts on stage debated the future of digital currencies, regulatory challenges, and their potential to disrupt traditional banking systems, especially as guardrails continue to become more advanced.
It was interesting to see that while there is still scepticism, the consensus was that DeFi is here to stay, and its adoption will only continue to rise.
In summary, the GFT team left a successful Money20/20, with a sense that the future of banking and fintech remains very bright. We expect to see the continued growth of emerging technologies in core banking, AI and DeFi as clients continue to embrace innovative and efficient new technologies. GFT is certainly placing the right focus and investments to remain a leader in these topics, and is already the go-to partner of choice for clients wishing to advance in these areas.
For more information about GFT and our capabilities, reach out directly or visit gft.com
