The financial sector is rapidly adopting technologies such as blockchain, IoT, and cloud computing, significantly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, to enhance customer experiences and streamline operations. Big data analysis is critical for organizations to make informed decisions, although data curation remains a significant challenge. As automation, including chatbots and enhanced app functionalities, becomes standard, financial institutions must also prioritize cybersecurity to protect against rising cyber threats.

1. The Future of
Finance Is Tech

2. The financial sector has always been on the
forefront of technology adoption, so it should
come as no surprise that headline-making
innovations such as blockchain, robotics and
cloud computing are cropping up across the
industry.
The COVID-19 pandemic only served to solidify
our adoption of these technologies. Customers
expect to conduct their banking via mobile
phones and the workforce expects to be able to
work from home.
Times have changed, and changed fast. To
keep up, financial institutions need to leverage
technology.
FinTech
is more
important
than ever.
Making big data usable.
The term “big data” has become a catch-all buzzword for our ever-increasing stores
of information. Essentially, it’s a company’s vast pool of information that has the
potential for remarkable insights. When organizations are able to analyze all that
data, they can make more informed business decisions and create better customer
experiences.
But before valuable insights can be gleaned from it, data must be ordered and
verified so it’s usable and trustworthy.
According to The New York Times, in 2014 data scientists spent 50–80% of their time
curating and preparing data so it could actually be used.1 With the rise in data
availability, this statistic is likely to have increased.
Big data & the cloud
Cloud computing and big data are closely intertwined.
The cloud helps break down silos between data pools across an organization,
leading to reduced fragmentation (and a lower cost of IT ownership). It also offers
lower data storage costs and, on some platforms, built-in analytics capabilities.
In short, the cloud makes naturally unwieldly big data far more manageable. It’s an
essential IT initiative for those organizations struggling to get more out of their data.

3. The IoT
In 2016, Citi launched a program in New York City that gave customers
cardless entry into ATM lobbies after hours just by using their smart
phone. This was just the latest in a series of new technology rollouts
for the company, including enhanced ATMs that customers could use
to conduct transactions typically reserved for tellers only.
It may not seem like much, but this is just one area in which we’re seeing financial businesses
embrace the Internet of Things (IoT), a connected web of “smart” devices. This technology really
has the potential to revolutionize the industry.
For example, IoT can be combined with big data to provide a more personalized customer
experience. By analyzing customers’ purchasing and investment behaviors, banks can offer
budgeting services or financial products that are relevant to their lifestyles.
But the benefits of IoT aren’t limited to banking. Insurers can use it to simplify underwriting and
claims processing, better determine risk and improve default predictions. It has the potential to
increase efficiency in international trade flows by tracking movement, supply and demand, thus
reducing cost and risk.
All about automation
The word “automation” is another term that gets thrown around when talking about innovative
technology. But what does automation actually look like when it comes to the financial sector?
App modernization
Most B2C organizations (and many B2B ones) already have an app
where their customers can complete transactions, answer basic
questions and reach out for additional support. That’s a great start, but
apps need to be constantly evolving, adding new capabilities, improving
user experience and tightening security.
Chatbots
The best applications of automation are those that free up human
workers from mundane tasks. Chatbots can do so by answering
frequently asked questions and routing customers to the correct human
employee. Their capabilities are expanding every day, making them one
of the most exciting automation technologies in the industry.

4. Don't neglect
security.
Data breaches not only result in
straight financial loses, but also erode
customers’ trust in financial institutions.
According to Accenture and the
Ponemon Institute, banks lose the most
to cyberattacks — an average of $18.3
million a year.2
The technologies we’ve been
discussing — Artificial Intelligence (AI),
IoT, the cloud and collaboration tools
— all make it quicker and easier for
customers and employees to access and
do more with data. However, this added
connectivity can also make said data
more vulnerable to outside attack.
So, as these technologies are
implemented and expanded, companies
must make sure that their IT security is
keeping pace. If they don’t, threat actors
will happily take advantage of weak
points in their system.
Blockchain: Is it the future
or a passing trend?
While discussing data security, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention blockchain. It has almost
limitless potential, but it’s still in the early stages of development for the financial sector.
While many organizations recognize the importance of blockchain, there are still some
companies that are unsure or unlikely to respond to the trend.
So why all the buzz around this emerging tech?
Blockchains are inherently secure. Because it’s a distributed ledger system, authenticity is
simultaneously confirmed by everyone on the network.
They also have the potential to be far cheaper than current platforms. Intermediaries, such as
those who move money around, tax transactions, store information or adjudicate contracts,
usually exact a toll on the transactions they interact with. Blockchain makes them superfluous
and eliminates the associated overhead costs.
$18.3
million a
year lost
to cyber-
attacks
Out with the
old, in with
the new.
Though the events of 2020 may have
accelerate our adoption of certain
technologies, the financial services
industry was already headed toward
widespread us of AI, IoT and the cloud.
Customers are increasingly trusting
automated technologies for financial
transactions and organizations have
found the value in augmenting the
human workforce with robotics.
Financial organizations should focus on
riding this wave of advancement instead
of clinging to incumbent systems and
processes. For this industry, it’s out with
the old and in with the new.

5. About Insight
Insight Enterprises Inc. empowers organizations of all sizes with Insight Intelligent
Technology Solutions™ and services to maximize the business value of IT. As a Fortune
500-ranked global provider of Digital Innovation, Cloud + Data Center Transformation,
Connected Workforce, and Supply Chain Optimization solutions and services, we help
clients successfully manage their IT today while transforming for tomorrow.
1.800.INSIGHT | insight.com
1
Lohr, Steve. (2014, Aug. 17). For Big Data Scientists,‘Janitor Work’ Is Key Hurdle to Insights. The New York Times.
2
Ponemon Institute. (2019). The Cost of Cybercrime. Accenture.