Tech Took the Wheel – Now Clients Are Driving Finance Forward – The

Q: What role do account-to-account payments and real-time payment rails play in this evolution?
Clow: And what’s going on now, when you think about the evolution of credit and debit, we’ve seen tremendous use, as we’ve gone from cards and point of sale to tokens and wallets. And we’ve gained a ton of benefits.

What I see happening next is where things go with either a top-up type model, like a Starbucks, where you have an account-to-account type debit, or the same as a funding model with a Block or Cash App.
Ultimately, we’re seeing account-to-account solutions emerge globally, with pay by bank solutions also gaining traction. And as we see more and more, the challenge really lies in the customer experience.

Trust as the Foundation of Instant Everything

Q: How is the demand for instant payments changing customer expectations and bank operations behind the scenes?
Clow: Three things frame the client expectations that we’re observing today. The first requirement is that it must be convenient. Number two, it has to be secure, secure both at the time of the transaction.
And then, number three, if the transaction goes wrong, if they don’t get the right shipment, or if it doesn’t get there on time, we always encourage people to talk to that merchant first. However, they need to know that the bank will aid them in helping themselves.

And I don’t think the speed of the transaction or the expectation changes for what role your bank or card company needs to play for you. But I would say that the other side of the coin is that there are a decent number of bad actors who are also trying to speed fraud and move money, making it a little harder to catch them.

Q: What role does trust play in enabling the seamless, automated experiences consumers now expect?
Clow: That could be a podcast in and of itself, but let me give you the short answer here. First and foremost, people often overlook the fact that we’ve invested tremendously in resiliency. Because if you think about it, when you’re down, not only are you letting your client down, you’re probably more vulnerable to people exploiting weaknesses.

Dig deeper:

So, we’ve developed resiliency and uptime, as seen in our work with Zelle and many of our online payment solutions are top-notch. The second thing is that you have to have a layered security approach.

Generative AI’s Practical Applications

Q: What role is generative AI playing in payments innovation and where do you see the most significant opportunities and risks?
Clow: Yeah, Jim, the whole push for generative AI in payments is more intellectually interesting to consider than practically. And here’s what I mean: our whole innovation process starts with the client problem we are solving.

I’m often asked about my AI strategy or cloud strategy. And at the end of the day,…