Is fintech disrupting banking technology or facilitating it? And what does this mean for the old players?

If banks are to adapt to the digital age, their first step must be to replace their core systems – which, in many cases, pre-date the internet – but, thus far, there has been a reluctance to do so. 

The issue of what constitutes a digital bank is an oft-debated topic of late. And while each digital bank will have its own unique qualities, all should cover five key factors.

Banks’ brand worth may not be high in the minds of consumers, but their trustworthiness is infinitely more important.

Coding is the new rock 'n' roll, as shown by the likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Jack Dorsey. Now banks are getting in on the act, with the competition to attract the next generation of 'rock stars' hotting up.

Those looking towards digital behemoths such as Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple as the companies most likely to shake up the financial world are way off the mark.

Banks are being charged by governments with preventing financial crime. Given the cost and complexity of this task, the only way they can effectively manage this new role is by utilising new third-party databases and information exchanges.

New rules based on the old banking system are at odds with a newly globalised world, in which innovation takes precedent over regulation, and technology and society are the principle axes of change.

Talk of banking channels is passé and misses the point. Going digital is about connecting everything, not carving it up.