Fintech Insider Podcast by 11:FS
00:34:47 · Jeremy Balkin
[00:34:47] S4: Well, so having just been at twenty twenty in Las Vegas, I will say that what separated this year from probably the previous ten years that I've been there is how the ecosystem, the conference, the community has evolved into not only launching this, but some other, I think really value added differentiators with the Money twenty twenty community, aligning the disruptors with the incumbents, the investors, the banks, all the different pieces of the ecosystem. I think this is much needed. I think different communities do things differently. I would say that this has been the missing piece for Money twenty twenty in many ways. They also announced a startup network where they handpicked five or six companies that they sort of have selected as sort of changing the various verticals within FinTech and payments. Today, And they happen to be one of them by coincidence. But I think it just shows how innovative Scarlett and Zach and the whole team have been to recognize the power of community, and they were really the first. And so what new evolution of that interaction can the conference not just be like three days of the year, it can live on for three sixty five days in a medium, whether it's through the app, through the chatbot, through the AI, through the connectivity to make this a living, breathing solution that adds value to all aspects of ecosystem, I think makes a ton of sense. And I'm glad that they're launching that sooner rather than later before somebody else does.
00:36:20 · Benjamin Ensor, Pranav Sood
[00:36:20] S0: So obviously it's good for money 2020, otherwise they wouldn't be doing it. I suppose the question is, is it good for everybody else? You're obviously a fan. Pranav, what do you think? [00:36:30] S3: I don't know. I mean, I feel like there are so many of these sorts of things where people pull together lists of of companies of various sorts and, connect, you know, connect the dots or offer to connect the dots between them. I think what Money twenty twenty have done over the last few years is incredible. I wasn't at LA this... Vegas this year, excuse me, but I was in in Amsterdam, and and we had, you know, big presence at both. But I also... I feel like I've got a little bit of fatigue of people wanting to connect people in fintech. So so sorry if I'm being the, the naysayer. [00:37:04] S0: Well, let's see where where where Kate is.
00:37:06 · Kate Moody
[00:37:06] S2: I suppose I'm interested because, know, we have lots of conversations with clients about various different platforms or platform plays. And I suppose the issue that you always have is about, you know, you've got two sides of the coin and you have to, in order for it to be feasible or attractive, you've got to get somebody, at least one of those sides onto the platform quite quickly in bulk. And so I suppose the thing I find interesting about this is the fact that they are saying that they're going to have 80,000 fintechs listed from day one, which obviously they're able to do because they've got this community, they've got all these registrations from from their conferences. So, yeah, I think it's I think it is interesting. I'm intrigued to kind of see how it plays out. I suppose the thing that I'd love to find out more about is, I suppose, what that value exchange is going to be really like on both sides, both the fintechs looking to find partnerships and also for the people looking to invest. I think when we've seen some of these platforms really take off is when they've provided really interesting analytics above and beyond just the straight matchmaking capabilities. So, you know, if you're a FinTech looking at partners, like what can you see about their profile, their portfolio, how long do they invest, know, what are their results and vice versa? Like actually, what are the metrics that partners can see? How can they compare one FinTech to another? And just sort of getting that initial connection right is really interesting, but also what they choose to do with the underlying data beneath that. So yeah, really, really hoping that I can speak to somebody once it's launched in January to find out a bit more about like what the actual experience is like of using it and would be keen to get like an investor perspective as well, because we have lots of really, really great leads who come onto the show from different investors who specialise in FinTech. I assume they put a lot of time and effort into building that specialism. So does something like this undermine them or does it see they see it as something that makes their lives easier? So I'm really keen to get that perspective too.
00:38:58 · Benjamin Ensor
[00:38:58] S0: One of my concerns is always about anything that's so any kind of content that's behind a walled garden that becomes inaccessible and that you start getting a sort of exclusive network that other people can't access. Money in 2020 is expensive, Going to 2020 costs a fair amount of money. Now obviously lots of people go and lots of people say that's a worthwhile investment because it is tougher if you're, let's say you're between jobs or let's say you're relatively junior and you're just starting out in your career. You can't get to 2020 because you probably can't get the budget and you maybe you can't afford it. And so I suppose one of my big questions is, well, who's gonna be able to use 20 fold? Is this gonna be open to everybody? Or do you have to be a money twenty twenty attendee? Do you have to have a certain sum of money? And does that mean that actually, people setting up FinTechs, people with great ideas who maybe, sorry, Jeremy, don't have as good, stronger reputation in network as someone like you already had. Does that make it harder for founders? Does that make it hard for founders from outside the industry? People trying to get in from retail? Is it a good thing to have a closed community?
00:40:03 · Jeremy Balkin
[00:40:03] S4: Ben, I think I hear everything you've said and I think that might be part of the rationale of what Money twenty twenty is trying to achieve here by saying, maybe this community can live and breathe for three sixty five days of the year in a different format to make it more accessible to the, especially to some of the very valid points you made earlier about folks in between roles, starting things up, etcetera. And maybe they'll... I don't think a network of 80,000 of anything is, and I mean, it's in a sincere way that exclusive, you know, if you look historically at these sorts of things. So I think this, I would argue opens up the exclusivity of the core Money twenty twenty network to a much broader audience to make it more inclusive and probably more accessible to folks at the wider end of the pyramid looking to make their way up. So I actually think it's a really good thing. And, you know, also one biggest of problems I've seen throughout my career is how does that proverbial founder or that proverbial disruptor get the attention of those who can help them? And it's really difficult. And now you've got all these sort of platforms that are all trying to sort of have the shiny toys that they can really hold tightly and then sort of very selectively share with their networks. And I think that's great if you're one of the chosen few, it's just not great if you're part of the 99.9% that doesn't get a voice. So I think actually what twenty twenty is trying to do here is actually to give the 99.9% a voice. But again, we'll see how it all rolls a year from now. But I think it's actually more likely to achieve the purpose that you described in the alternative.
00:41:39 · Benjamin Ensor
[00:41:39] S0: I really like Kate's point and you're kind of driving at the same thing about this, how easy it is to discover people within it is gonna be a crucial thing, right? Does it become a community that makes it easier to find new, interesting people, people you don't know, companies you don't know, or does it just take you back to the same big names and sort of kind of not achieve that goal? And that's really, really tough. And the economics of the media industry are not easy, right? So all credit to Money twenty twenty because it's tough to make media businesses work when there's so much free content out there. Okay. Well, let's move on then to our next story, which is that Marketa is launching a credit card platform. So Marketa is hoping that this new credit card issuing platform, which supports any card type and format will help to establish the company as a complete embedded finance solution. According to Marketa, brands can now embed a credit card into their own digital experience, allowing them to increase overall customer engagement with their product. The Marketa platform will allow brands to tailor products and credit offerings to the needs of their customers. And by harnessing real time data, brands can access insights, set spending controls and generate new cards instantly. The new technology is the result of Marketa's acquisition of Power Finance in January 2023. Before I bring in the panel, we contacted Marketa, whose Vice President of Product, Randy Fernando, had this to say.