Financial services must catch up with the advances made in communications since the advent of the internet and smartphones. That will require taking bold action to build a seamless, interconnected network that would give all individuals and businesses full control over their financial lives.
BASEL –The financial system is ready for a giant leap forward. It’s time to explore new frontiers. We foresee a time when applying for a mortgage or a small business loan could be as easy as texting a friend or booking a hotel room online.
There has been some progress on technology to enable such a new reality, as evidenced by the proliferation of mobile-payment apps. But transforming financial services will require creating an entirely new system to match the advances made in communications since the advent of the internet and smartphones. Today’s mobile phones are powerful computers, after all, so it would be a waste not to maximize their use.
To this end, we have drawn on our joint expertise in economics and technology to offer a blueprint for the future financial architecture. What we call the “Finternet” is a vision of multiple financial ecosystems that connect with one another, much like the internet, in order to give individuals and businesses full control over their financial lives. We foresee a world in which people and companies can use any device to transfer any financial asset – no matter the amount – to anyone in the world. These transactions would be cheap, secure, near-instantaneous, and available to all.
BASEL –The financial system is ready for a giant leap forward. It’s time to explore new frontiers. We foresee a time when applying for a mortgage or a small business loan could be as easy as texting a friend or booking a hotel room online.
There has been some progress on technology to enable such a new reality, as evidenced by the proliferation of mobile-payment apps. But transforming financial services will require creating an entirely new system to match the advances made in communications since the advent of the internet and smartphones. Today’s mobile phones are powerful computers, after all, so it would be a waste not to maximize their use.
To this end, we have drawn on our joint expertise in economics and technology to offer a blueprint for the future financial architecture. What we call the “Finternet” is a vision of multiple financial ecosystems that connect with one another, much like the internet, in order to give individuals and businesses full control over their financial lives. We foresee a world in which people and companies can use any device to transfer any financial asset – no matter the amount – to anyone in the world. These transactions would be cheap, secure, near-instantaneous, and available to all.