To Love – and to Trust, what longer lifespans could mean for us, June 10th podcast

To Love – and to Trust

Worldwide, we are experiencing an unprecedented global shift in demographics. By 2050, 1 in 5 in the world will be aged 60 and above. Along with longer lifespans, we are also working longer, with a growing number of contingent workers participating in the gig economy. Adding to the increasingly complex picture are our varied financial obligations, from tuition for our children to financial caregiving for our parents.

Meanwhile, there are still 1.7 billion unbanked adults worldwide. Many women face extraordinary employment gap and pay gap. Billionaires now have more wealth than ever, while almost half of humanity have barely escaped extreme poverty and middle-class households increasingly feel left behind.

According to Oxfam, last year, 26 people owned the same as the 3.8 billion people who make up the poorest half of humanity. Not only do we have rising inequality in our society, money costs more when you are underprivileged. From transferring money abroad, to getting a loan, or opening a bank account, it is expensive to be poor.

How can financial services industry innovate to meet the needs of this evolving world? Believing that inequality is not inevitable and that we can do well while doing good, how can we make banking better so that we can create a fairer society for all?

Where is the platform for my financial life?

To truly transform, we have to go back to the basics. What is the value of banking in this era? What are the ethical duties of financial institutions?

There is much talk about digital transformation in banking and beyond. Branches are slowly disappearing – in favor of banking on mobile; human-to-human interaction is increasingly guided (if not replaced) by machines. But while these channels are getting digitized, the fundamentals of relationship is still very much human.

Money is emotional and personal. And financial institutions canplay a part of a consumer’s life journey, from buying the first car to graduating from college; from purchasing a new home, to getting married; from birth of a child to kids going to college; from retiring to mourning the death of a spouse or family member. Reflecting upon our own past experiences, how many memorable life’s moments have our banks missed?

In humanity, trust is everything we have. My 6-year old would say: “Trust is when you share something with someone that you like, you know that she won’t break it or take it away.” How do we then, as an industry, earn trust from consumers, especially after the financial crisis? How can financial institutions better leverage the data that is available – and create more value to consumers beyond providing insights? How may we embed emerging technology to improve the well-being of our customers – and of humanity?

Where our next evolution will lead us, will be dependent on the right combination of business model, technology, regulation – and most importantly, love. After all, true love knows no bounds; what limits you is your mind and what you think you can or cannot do.

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Listen in to our conversation with Paolo Sironi, on our new episode of Judge Me By My Cover on iTunesand Spotify, as we talk about digital transformation in banking and more.

See more articles by Theodora here

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