Bankloch

As companies expand, it is almost inevitable that bureaucracy grows alongside them. The term " bureaucracy " typically carries a negative connotation, often associated with demotivated personnel, complex and excessive procedures, slow decision-making, silo-thinking, a disconnect between management and employees, and a lack of digitalization and innovation. One might assume that avoiding or at least reducing bureaucracy is a fundamental objective for any organization. However, achieving this is easier said than done and is often not even desired, as bureaucracy also serves to maintain order and consistency, reduce operational risk, and enhance predictability. When a start-up embarks on the journey to becoming a corporate giant, a transformation in organizational structure and processes is inevitable. While this evolution is necessary for growth and stability, it tends to introduce bureaucracy - often seen as a necessary evil. In a start-up with a small team (let us say up to 2...

In Belgium, the   traditional savings account remains highly popular , boasting a total deposit of over 300 billion EUR. With approximately 11.5 million inhabitants, this averages to about 25,000 EUR per Belgian on their savings account. However, this is an average value; most Belgians do not have this amount on their saving account, which means some hold substantially larger amounts. Nevertheless, the savings account has come   under scrutiny   in recent years due to several reasons: For years, the interest accrued from savings accounts   fails to keep up with inflation rates . Consequently, money on a savings account gradually loses its value. Following the banking crisis, a lot of   people could not access their funds for very long times , due to placing them at banks that came into financial troubles (e.g. people who deposited their savings at Kaupthing bank or Optima Bank). Although deposits are protected by a 100.000 EUR guarantee, this may prove insuffici...

The   potential of AI/ML is immense , yet it is often misused by managers who are driven by trends and a fear of missing out. Like any technology, AI/ML should be seen as a means to an end and should be evaluated for its business value within the appropriate context. To make   informed decisions , managers should begin by assessing the use case they want to address and evaluating the associated business value. This evaluation should be conducted independently of considering the use of AI/ML. Unfortunately, the decision to use AI/ML is often the first one made. When   determining the suitability of AI/ML , it is essential to have a clear understanding of its definition. AI/ML relies on complex models with thousands or even millions of parameters, fine-tuned through training. It excels in situations where: There are   large datasets available for training the model   (or your use case fits an already trained model offered by a third-party company). It is   ch...

In the landscape of financial services, a multitude of ' as a service ' models have emerged, revolutionizing how both financial and non-financial institutions (such as retail and HR Tech) offer financial services to their customers. Gone are the days of complex, lengthy implementation and regulatory projects. Financial services can now be readily accessed through a diverse array of ' Embedded Banking ' and ' Banking as a Service ' (BaaS) solutions. Within this expansive "finance as a service" ecosystem, companies offer   varying layers of abstraction : Card Issuing Processors , such as Marqeta, Enfuce, or ByQwest, remove the complexity of issuing cards and connecting to international payment schemes like VISA or MasterCard, or to card issue/personalization providers like Idemia or Tag Systems UK. BIN Sponsors , including Stripe, Adyen, Swan, or Tresor (along with Marqeta and Enfuce), extend beyond card issuing processors by providing a card BIN range (...