Provoke.fm Media

In this episode, Breaking Banks delves into the evolving landscape of financial health standards, exploring how the Financial Health Network is pioneering a new set of standards aimed at designing financial products that prioritize consumer well-being. These standards, set to transform financial services by focusing on customer-centric outcomes, start with a focus on checking accounts and credit cards. encouraging people to spend well, and will be part of a library of standards around how financial institutions and fintechs can design financial products and services with the user’s financial health outcome in mind. A practical blueprint for building financial products with integrated financial health solutions.

Listen as Jason Henrichs and Brett King catch up with frequent guest Jennifer Tescher, President and CEO of the Financial Health Network and host of the EMERGE Everywhere podcast to discuss these new finhealth standards launched at the recent EMERGE conference. The trio explore:

Small changes can drive big impact and improve financial decisions, management and ultimately financial lives. There is a lot that financial institutions and fintechs can do right now and make a difference, but there’s also a lot to get right — tune in now! 

Supporting the gig economy and ethical AI – two massive components you can’t afford to ignore.

Detailed Summary:

In this episode of the Finovate podcast, host interviews Tamara Laine, founder of MPWR, who shares her unique journey from professional ballerina and choreographer to documentary filmmaker, investigative journalist, and finally tech entrepreneur. Laine discusses how her extensive experience as a gig worker—spanning over half her career—revealed significant financial barriers despite earning good income. Even while making six figures at times, she couldn’t obtain credit cards or loans because traditional financial systems aren’t designed for workers without W-2 income, highlighting a critical gap affecting over half the U.S. workforce.

The conversation goes on to explore how the financial industry needs to innovate for gig workers by understanding their unique cash flow patterns and developing alternative credit assessment methods beyond traditional FICO scores. Laine emphasizes that while gig workers may have inconsistent monthly income, their annual patterns are often stable and predictable, suggesting that financial products could be redesigned to accommodate these differences. The discussion highlights how younger generations are increasingly credit-thin as they move away from traditional employment and credit products, creating an urgent need for financial inclusion.

The podcast then shifts to ethical AI, drawing from Laine’s Emmy-winning investigative reporting on activist investors—notably a group of nuns—who pushed major corporations to implement ethical AI frameworks. She describes how this experience informed her approach to developing AI tools at MPWR, emphasizing the importance of preventing bias in financial technology. The conversation concludes with a discussion about responsibility for ethical AI development, with Laine advocating for diverse teams and multiple perspectives rather than relying solely on regulation, noting that we’re in the “wild west” of AI development where today’s decisions may impact financial systems for decades.

More info:

MPWR: http://www.MPWR.money ; https://www.linkedin.com/company/mpwrai/

Tamara Laine: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamaralaine/

Greg Palmer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregbpalmer/

Finovate: https://www.finovate.com; https://www.linkedin.com/company/finovate-conference-series/

#Finovate #podcast #fintechpodcast #financialservices #bankingInnovation #fintech #alternativecredit #gigeconomy #credit #ethicalai #AI #innovation #startup #banking

What happens when lazy humans outsource their thought process to machines?  You get a society that vibes its way into a blurry, sub-optimal future. The surge of slop means that AI is creating more work for humans instead of stealing our jobs.  Mark Pesce returns to The Futurists to cut through the hype and the skepticism about modern tech. He calls out AI mediocrity and reminds us why human learning remains painful. Topics include: Chat GPT psychosis, why we need a generation of PhDs to revisit eternal questions about Truth, the perpetual dawn of AGI,  what happens to the political economy when the populace is siloed into bubbles, why Kremlin propagandists produce propaganda for machines instead of people, why experience cannot be generated, why autocracies need accurate data, and the real reason why people get lost in untruth.

This week on Breaking Banks, we focus on a fundamental topic in financial services: trust. Trust is the cornerstone of any successful banking relationship. Consumers trust their financial institutions to protect their information and funds—and that trust is warranted. We have guarantees like FDIC insurance to back it up.

The importance of trust is acutely felt in community banking. In this episode, Jason Henrichs introduces us to Carie Kelly, Senior Vice President and Digital Banking Officer at Claremont Savings Bank, and Stephen Lewis, President and CEO of Thomaston Savings Bank. Listen in as they talk about trust, what their community banks are doing to build and enhance it, and how they’re preparing for advanced issues in banking.

A $124 trillion opportunity in the U.S. lies in the current transfer of intergenerational wealth. Emily Cisek, Founder and CEO of Paige—a comprehensive life planning and succession software platform for families and small businesses—joins us to discuss a recent partnership with both Claremont Savings Bank and Thomaston Savings Bank, helping them serve as trusted advisors in generational transitions.

It’s an engaging episode with implications and applications for all generations and age groups. Enjoy the episode, and let us know what you think!

The importance of human-centered innovation – one banker’s thoughts on building the right kind of innovative community.

Detailed Summary:

In this Finovate podcast, Greg Palmer interviews Catherine Lynch, who leads digital experience and human-centered design at Citizens, a super-regional bank with approximately 1,000 branches primarily in the Northeast and $220 billion in assets. With over 20 years in banking and previous experience at Accenture and tech startups, Lynch has built her career around leveraging technology to solve customer problems. At Citizens, she focuses on digital channel strategy and experience design for a diverse customer base that includes consumers, commercial clients, and wealth management customers.

Lynch explains that regardless of customer type, banking clients have three fundamental needs: seeing their money, moving their money, and protecting their money. She notes that customer needs have evolved as people face cognitive overload, economic stress, and reduced community connections, creating demand for simpler, easier banking experiences. To meet these changing expectations, Citizens employs a human-centered design approach, putting customer needs at the center of their problem-solving process through empathy, collaboration, iteration, and testing. Their innovation lab, part of Green Pixel Studios, allows them to observe customers interacting with their services and quickly develop solutions to address pain points.

Looking toward the future, Lynch emphasizes the importance of partnerships with fintech companies, which focus on specific customer problems that Citizens might not have the resources to explore independently. She highlights their involvement with Mass Fintech Hub, which connects financial institutions with academia, startups, and government to address industry challenges collaboratively. By maintaining these connections and leveraging evolving capabilities, Citizens aims to deliver exceptional customer experiences while addressing the information overload many customers face today.

More info:

Citizens Bank: https://www.citizensbank.com/ ; https://www.linkedin.com/company/citizens-bank/

Catherine Lynch: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-lynch-42678510/

Greg Palmer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregbpalmer/

Finovate: https://www.finovate.com; https://www.linkedin.com/company/finovate-conference-series/

#Finovate #podcast #fintechpodcast #financialservices #bankingInnovation #fintech #fintechpartnerships #digitaltransformation #AI #innovation #startup #banking

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews Kevin Govender, author of “The Rise of the Sharing Economy”. Together, they discuss the sharing economy—a concept that Time magazine named one of the “Ten ideas that will change the world” in 2011, and which has since grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry. Kevin breaks down the evolution of sharing platforms, key consumer trends, and alternative business models. These insights empower us to view access as a powerful cultural and socio-economic force that creates savings in time, money, and space. Filled with real-world business examples, the conversation reveals how the sharing economy is fundamentally transforming the way we live, work, learn, and consume.

GUEST SOCIAL MEDIA

Kevin Govender – https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevingovender/

This week Brett interview he founder of the world’s first data savings account and data wallet ecosystem, Andre Vellozo of Drumwave. Vellozo makes a compelling case that GDPR and data privacy regulations won’t work in the age of AI, that we need data ownership structures and the ability to monetize our data, especially related to digital twin models like AI-based healthcare. Drumwave maintains that owning your own data and deploying it in the emerging autonomous world might eliminate the need for UBI and other such proposals. Do you know where your data is? 

In this episode, Matteo Rizzi sits down with Artur Pereira — entrepreneur, speaker, SWIFT specialist, and CEO of D-Evo — to explore Africa’s journey from legacy banking systems to digital excellence. Drawing from his extensive experience in Portugal, Angola, and across the continent, Artur unpacks the unique challenges and opportunities in African payments: from interoperability gaps and cross-border complexities to the promise of instant payments, blockchain, and stablecoins. The conversation dives into the role of the African Union in setting standards, the power of data and unified IDs, and why regulatory collaboration is key to scaling FinTech. Artur shares success stories like M-Pesa and Karingo, while advocating for sustainable investment models that empower local talent and entrepreneurs. Together, they highlight why innovation, trust, and regional cooperation are the cornerstones of Africa’s next leap in financial services.

Today we celebrate the 15th anniversary of Dodd-Frank!

Tune in as Alex Johnson (Fintech Takes), Kiah Haslett (writer and former banking and fintech editor at Bank Director), and Dara Tarkowski (Tech on Reg host and Partner at Actuate Law) join host Jason Henrichs. They dive deep into Dodd-Frank, discussing its successes and shortcomings as the most significant piece of regulatory overhaul of the last century. Consider this a master class on the topic!

Does the GENIUS Act have similar potential? Don’t miss these “Sweet Takes” on legislation!

Listen now!

Zoltan István holds the distinction of being the first Transhumanist to run for President of the United States.  Now Zoltan has set his sights on the Governor’s office in California, a $4 trillion economy that ranks as the fourth-largest in the world, and the leader in global innovation. Zoltan joins the Futurists this week to discuss his plan to replace Gavin Newsom. He answers some pressing questions about the future risks and opportunities faced by the biggest US state.