LEADERSHIP

34 but today a lot of banks are working closely with fintechs as we are ourselves ,” Rao comments .

More so than AI and Big Data , which are already proving disruptive , a new technology Rao is particularly excited about – and one he feels has yet to be explored to its full potential – is blockchain . “ Financial services has been one of the braver industries in experimenting with blockchain ,” he comments . “ I think it has the potential to disrupt parts of the banking industry and make processes more democratic and secure , certainly more transparent to stakeholders , as well as bringing about a lot more efficiency .” Rao says that while the technology has yet to “ sweep ” the industry , banks are showing more interest in proof of concepts to understand how it might be monetised . “ There are use cases which are of common interest : cross border payments , remittances , trade finance , digital identity and so on ,” he explains . “ The fact that a blockchain network is more secure , transparent and efficient is largely understood . The focus now is on monetisation .”

Sanat Rao , CEO and Global Head of Finacle

The new financial landscape creates particular challenges for the larger , traditional banks with mammoth operations to transform as well as significant legacy systems . Finacle has partnered with giants like Santander UK and the Australian Military Bank to help them on their journeys . “ Santander is a good example of a leading institution that has begun making a change in a very important area . Today , hoarding cash and not deploying it in a more efficient manner is

MARCH 2019