It started a few weeks ago. It always starts at the end of a year. The emails, the phone calls and LinkedIn messages. They are all about the same thing — a request, an offer, an inquiry — all looking at: “Predictions for 2024!”
And I ignore every. Single. One.
‘Why?’ you ask? Well, I’ll tell you.
Our world, our society, our banking industry is constantly undergoing immense change. Artificial intelligence will make us rethink what it means to work, the very concept of money remains a battleground, and the real battlegrounds of geopolitical conflict cause us to question humanity.
The only thing anyone can accurately predict is change. All that change takes real skill, proper strategy and hard work. I don’t know anyone in our industry who doesn’t feel that banking is constantly in flux and that real creativity and imagination is needed to stay on top of it.
But prediction lists are not about real insight, nor truly valuable intelligence. They are about search engine optimisation, content marketing and brand recognition — all in the name of stating the bleeding obvious. Only these banal, so-called ‘insights’ come fresh on LinkedIn and use rocket ship and bomb blast emojis as bullet points.
What exactly do these requests want to know from the likes of me, lowly deputy editor of The Banker? Hmm, let me think. I predict in 2024 the industry will be talking about — wait for it — embedded finance! No, please don’t all stand at once for applause.
Conversely, why would I, as lowly editor of our Digital journeys newsletter (sign up to receive it here), want to include your 2024 predictions, usually from the head of product marketing at a tech company that sells into my audience, that offer such compelling insights as — wait for it — embedded finance will be a thing!
Note to all who care to listen: ads aren’t free.
Call me out for being grumpy this close to the holidays, but our industry deserves better than buzzwords and cartoon emojis.
To lighten the mood, let me instead make a list of things I wish will happen next year.
I hope the industry starts listening to real leaders who have a vested interest in improving financial services and not just tech bros whose wallets got fat because they got lucky during the dot-com boom.
I wish the next cultural and societal change we experience, brought on by emerging technology, is created by different people, not people who think every thought they hold is gospel because they can see their yacht from the backyard.
I wish that violence and bloodshed become less common throughout the world (yes, I did just wish for world peace — pass me the tiara and roses now).
And I wish everyone who works to make this centuries old, sometimes frustrating, but always important world of financial services and banking better, a restful end of the year and an enjoyable holiday season.
You can connect with Liz on LinkedIn, or follow her on Bluesky @lizlum.bsky.social.
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