American Banker Podcast

William Dudley, who will retire soon as New York Fed president, talks about banks' corporate culture, risks to the economy and what advice he would give his successor.

Are American college students using their student loan dollars wisely? Mike Brown, research analyst at LendEDU, explains the findings of a recent study of student borrowers.

Doug Nielsen from U.S. Bank joins Brett King and co-host Jason Henrichs to talk about SXSW 2018 and Jim Marous, publisher of the Digital Banking Report, weighs in on Amazon's plans for a checking account.

Ken Rees, the CEO of fintech online lender Elevate Credit, explains why payday lending is the roach motel of financial products -- "you check in and it's very difficult to check back out" -- and how his company helps subprime consumers become creditworthy. Also, he shares why his company gives $500 to each employee to buy a bicycle.

Banks increasingly avoid crypto, even banning the purchase of it with their credit cards. But Grainne McNamara at PwC has come up with a framework banks could use to participate in the digital currency world.

Bank of America took heat recently for deciding to charge $12 a month for an e-banking account that had been free. But there are ways to add revenue without ruffling feathers, behavioral economist Wei Ke explains.

Ellen Zimiles, a former federal prosecutor and current consultant to banks at Navigant, shares her experience employing people with autism and other disabilities.  

Natasha Lamb, managing director at Arjuna Capital and the activist investor who got four large banks to publish their adjusted gender pay gaps, explains that companies with gender diversity perform better and are more innovative than those that lack it, and that changing a bro culture takes time.

Brandon Krieg, co-founder and CEO of StashInvest, shares what his company is doing to create a comfortable, "frictionless" point of entry for investing.

Dek: Breaking Banks producer Rachel Morrissey visits the Mastercard Innovation Lab in Nairobi and reports on ideas under development there.

Celent analysts Alenka Grealish and Stephen Greer explain how banks in Europe and the Netherlands have built business models around open banking.

A CapGemini study found that within three years, 40% of consumers will use voice assistants rather than a website or app (compared to 24% today). What does this mean for banks' business models?

Mick Mulvaney, acting director of the CFPB, sent strong signals in a memo to all bureau staff last week that he wants to crack down on unscrupulous debt-collection firms as well as be less mission-driven and more data-focused. Kate Berry reports.

Dan Kimerling, an open banking pioneer turned venture capitalist who recently founded Deciens Capital, explains what open banking is, why an excessive focus on risk management prevents U.S. banks from adopting it, and why it would make sense for them to take on the platform model.

Venture capitalist Spiros Margaris offers a level-headed perspective on the hotly debated cryptocurrency alternative to traditional methods for funding young companies.

How politics, corruption, population growth and new technology are reshaping banking in Central and South America.

This week, Brett King interviews Ben Goertzel, chief scientist of robotics firm Hanson Robotics, about the strengths and weaknesses of Hanson's humanoid Sophia robot. "We're teaching her to understand what she sees and hears and hold conversations about what happens in her everyday environment," he said. Goertzel, who is also founder and CEO of SingularityNET, a blockchain-based AI marketplace, sh...

Jon Stein, CEO of Betterment, uses behavioral biology and machine learning to to make his robo-advisor software's suggestions continuously more intelligent and personalized.  

What's in the Senate plan to scale back the Dodd-Frank Act and if it goes through, how will it impact bankers? American Banker reporter Ian McKendry reports on the potentially landmark legislation.

Bitcoin has passed $13,000 in value, and is now acting as a digital asset. But with the spike in value, many people are wondering if this is a bubble or just the beginning. Brett King hosts four guests: Brian Roemmele, founder of PayFinders.com; Bailey Reutzel, U.S. editor of Coindesk; Gabe Sukenik, founder of Morph Token; and Suleman Din, technology editor at American Banker and Financial Plannin...

The battle for control of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau appears to be over for now. How will the winner, Trump-appointed Mick Mulvaney, reshape the consumer watchdog agency? American Banker Editor-in-Chief Rob Blackwell shares his inside-the-Beltway take on the CFPB's future.

Jane Fraser, chief executive of Citigroup Latin America, talks about the dramatic changes the company has been making to its business model in that region and shares her perspective on how the new strategy is working out so far. She also touches on the unusual popularity of retail bank branches in Mexico, the digital push Citi is planning there next year, and what she sees as the three biggest dif...

When CFPB Director Richard Cordray resigns in two weeks, will the agency grind to a halt? Kate Berry shares the latest on the embattled agency.

Fintechs got a head-start in the person-to-person payments race, and Zelle seemed like banks' catchup attempt, but it may prove to be a true innovation. Brett hosts Elise Moussa, CEO of Snapay , Jim Marous of The Financial Brand, JP Nicols, host of Serial Intrapreneur, and Wade Arnold, Builder of Awesomeness at BillGo.

President Trump's nominee for Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome Powell, has served on the Fed board since 2012 and been in the public eye for decades. But what he would actually do with the job is something of a mystery. American Banker reporter John Heltman provides an inside-the-beltway view of the likely new Fed head.