Bloomberg has a story about how US banks are getting ready for - you guessed it - Amazon, which is trying to make inroads in the financial services sector.
Amazon, the story says, “is now in early discussions to create a product for retail customers similar to checking accounts. The tech giant’s ambitions could prove especially challenging for regional lenders, which rely more heavily than larger Wall Street firms on providing basic banking services to consumers.”
One of the things that traditional banks are doing is working to beef up “partnerships with financial-technology startups or pursuing outright acquisitions.” The story says that these banks are putting money into investment funds that are focused on technology.
“If we do a great job with our customer, then it’s very hard for someone else to come in between us and that customer,” Bruce Van Saun, CEO of Rhode Island-based Citizens Financial Group, tells Bloomberg. That holds true, he says, “whether it’s a tech company trying to disrupt that relationship or a money-center bank opening offices.”
Amazon, the story says, “is now in early discussions to create a product for retail customers similar to checking accounts. The tech giant’s ambitions could prove especially challenging for regional lenders, which rely more heavily than larger Wall Street firms on providing basic banking services to consumers.”
One of the things that traditional banks are doing is working to beef up “partnerships with financial-technology startups or pursuing outright acquisitions.” The story says that these banks are putting money into investment funds that are focused on technology.
“If we do a great job with our customer, then it’s very hard for someone else to come in between us and that customer,” Bruce Van Saun, CEO of Rhode Island-based Citizens Financial Group, tells Bloomberg. That holds true, he says, “whether it’s a tech company trying to disrupt that relationship or a money-center bank opening offices.”
- KC's View:
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I am reminded of what Bette Davis, as aging actress Margo Channing, says at one point in All About Eve…
”Fasten your seatbelts; it's going to be a bumpy night.”
(Great movie, by the way ... if you've never seen it, you should check it out.)
Banks should take notice. Doing business the same old way won’t work anymore.
