Bank worries over fintech and an approaching “Uber moment” are subsiding, new research finds
Bank worries over fintech and an approaching "Uber moment" are subsiding, a new study suggests.
A survey of 127 finance industry professionals by Autonomous Research found that while fintech is seen to matter more, the perceived “Uber risk” is receding.
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Nine per cent of those surveyed said they saw fintech as a destructive “Uber moment” for banks when they were asked last month. This is down from 14 per cent in December last year.
Last month, a report by Citigroup suggested the banking industry in Europe and the US is approaching an “automation tipping point”, or “Uber moment”. Citi said the Uber moment will lead to a "shift to mobile distribution being the main channel of interaction between customers and the bank".
The “digital disruption” note also predicted traditional banks will reduce employee numbers by 30 per cent in the next decade.
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But the Autonomous Research report found those surveyed were not concerned because startups are realising “building a product is a lot easier than finding customers”, who already have relationships with banks.
Therefore, banks are beginning to see startups more as partners than disrupters.