Bankadelic: The colorful side of finance

In a news cycle dominated by pandemic, unrest and a presidential election, there hasn’t been much talk about cryptocurrency until very recently, when a single bitcoin soared to more than $30,000 in value. With major financial analysts following it, and everyday people learning to use it, bitcoin has clearly come of age. Patrick Sells, American Bankers’s Digital Banker of the Year and the Head of B...

Even as the pandemic accelerates digital change, one area where high-tech can help consumers the most remains largely unexploited. That is: Between the customer dialing a call center and finally reaching a representative, chatbots can make the journey smooth and fast — while enhancing satisfaction in the process. Suraya Randawa, Head of Research, Financial Intelligence at Informa, walks us through...

Bankadelic returns for the second half of its holiday hoe-down, featuring 11 special guests from the financial services world. In Part Two they opine on what’s ahead in 2021 and share some lessons they'll carry with them into the new year. Special thanks to the William Mills Agency for making this two-part episode possible. Happy holidays! Michael Ball, Vice President of Markets and Strategy, IMM
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Since we’re in a giving mood, Bankadelic presents not one, not two, not four but ELEVEN special guests from the financial services world to share what they saw as 2020’s bright spots—and yes, there were more than a few in an otherwise tough year. They’ll also divulge their favorite holiday songs, explaining what makes their pick special. Special thanks to the William Mills Agency for making this e...

While financial institutions were forced to wing it in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s a growing a sense that 2021 will allow everyone to be improvise less and strategize more. Tom Long of the Long Group shares his findings about the cornerstones of strategic advantage, running the gamut from market differentiation to the people you put in the driver’s seat. Though things will nev...

In the hours and days after George Floyd’s death, Sunrise Banks CEO David Reiling could hear the sirens, helicopters and protests just outside his office in Minneapolis. It forced him to rethink how fintechs and community banks, already mired in a pandemic, could double and triple down on ways to financially help the struggling and most vulnerable. The author of “Fintech For Good,” Reiling shares...

As consumers make their way through the pandemic, they’ve had to face all manner of sharp turns, from learning new technology to figuring out how to manage their finances in a time of extraordinary trial. Rutger van Faassen and Gina DeCorla of Informa Financial Intelligence take us through the changes in consumer behavior they’ve seen, and how financial institutions can not only help them adapt bu...

Even after working three jobs for four years and saving around $30,000, David Adefeso graduated Harvard Business School with more than $100,000 in student debt. The lessons he learned as a successful financial advisor, and in paying off his own staggering balance, led him to launch a mobile college savings app, Sootchy. Slated to launch by the end of 2020, Sootchy helps families save for school an...

Often, the gap between consumers who need assistance and the financial institutions that serve them can seem insurmountable. What’s more, the COVID-19 pandemic has raised the stakes on every side, and threatened to make the gulf even wider. Rochelle Nawrocki Gorey, the CEO and co-founder of SpringFour, walks us through how her award-winning fintech has made it possible for financially challenged i...

Yes, COVID-19 has set forth a digital technology acceleration like no other. But is it moving so fast that customers who crave community and connection are getting left behind? The results are mixed. But banks that deliver on the promise of acclimating customers to new tools, and that facilitate connection, are making amazing progress. Corey Gross of Sensibill (left, in an encore visit) and Doug B...

Looking back, it’s impossible to imagine that COVID-19 would cause a tectonic shift in banking, and life itself, worthy of an earthquake. A forecast of 200,000 dead in the U.S. would’ve seemed laughable then, and financial institutions perhaps ready to dig in for a few weeks or months must now deal with a “New Abnormal” of indefinite length. On this special episode, 12 thought leaders address topi...

Traditional bankers, including those on the community banking level, often get confused by the roles technology, talent and culture should play in their success. Often the result adds up to a lack of vitality, vision and courage. Patrick Sells, the Chief Innovation Officer at Quontic Bank, has created something entirely different. On this episode walks up through the four principles the have made...

Millennials are set to inherit record wealth; the generations to follow already have questions and curiosities about how markets work. Trouble is, sales-obsessed traditional banks haven’t stepped up to show them the ropes. Kelly Lannan, Vice President, Young Investors at Fidelity Investments, explains how to change that and talks about the new Fidelity Spire app, focused on helping young adults sa...

Go ahead: Call the young fintech hotshots disruptors, revolutionaries, future stars. But don’t say they have a track record, experience or even a cursory knowledge of financial services. With some 75 years of combined experience, Chris Doner (left) and Mark Allen (right) of Access Softek have been fintech pioneers since before the term “fintech” existed. What keeps them going and why do they still...

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, financial assistance via the Paycheck Protection Program has been tough to sort out for … just about everyone. Now, imagine what it’s like to be a fintech, working with community banks, that’s trying to solve the PPP mystery and find a wealth of opportunity. Joe Ehrhardt, founder and CEO of Teslar Software, takes us through what he’s learned, what he’s learning an...

It’s amazing to think that in our sophisticated age, some banks still mail out paper statements: a costly and not-so-environmentally-friendly practice. Yet may institutions have faced hurdles, some self imposed, in adopting digital statement technology. This week, Griffin McGahey of HC3 discusses not just the many advantages of digital statements for banks, but also how vendors on his end of the b...

We’re all taught to read and write. But how many people know how to read the numbers? Financial services organizations can’t afford to take financial literacy for granted—not now—but they also have a big role to play, especially at this critical juncture in history. Back for an encore appearance, Kathleen Craig, Founder and President of HT Mobile Apps, shares her wisdom and experience in bringing...

If 2019's most talked-about subject in banking was customer experience, this year it's been the coronavirus, far and away. Todd Robertson, ARGO's Senior Vice President of Business Development, explains how the last few months of explosive digital growth have created more opportunities than ever to enhance physical customer experiences that aren't available as they once were.

Who would've thought a decade ago the homebuyers's best friend would be an algorithm? Brad Sivert, the Head of Proptech & Marketing at Tavant, explains the powerful synergy made possible by AI and data analytics. Proptech (or "property technology") not only puts buyers and lenders on the same page like never before, it also gives a deep glimpse into neighborhood statistics and variables many buyer...

Part sales science part art, mastering social media in a way that’s savvy and compliant for financial services institutions—and their customer-facing sales teams—involves much more than plopping up a Facebook page and calling it good. Doug Wilber, CEO of Denim Social, takes us through the steps that can help banks soar, even (or especially) in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Also featured: The...

How would the women banking leaders of today encourage the female leaders of tomorrow? In the second of two parts, Bankadelic producer and Chicago-based entrepreneur Jennie Ellman interviews four gifted, successful leaders in banking. From upper left, clockwise: Jill Homan, president of DeepTarget; Kim Snyder, founder and CEO of KlariVis; Kathleen Craig, founder and CEO of HT Mobile Apps; and Lena...

Women are leaders. Women are innovators. Women are doers. Yet the financial services world often overlooks--or even ignores, in favor of balance sheet obsession--how women bring exceptional abilities in listening, empathy and community building to the table. In the first of two parts, Bankadelic producer and Chicago-based entrepreneur Jennie Ellman interviews four gifted, successful leaders in ban...

While financial organizations have always been asked to pivot with the times, these days it’s more of a limbo dance that demands unprecedented flexibility. At the heart of it all, banks have a call to trade in last year’s strategic plan for life in a very uncertain now. But they also have stories to tell about how they’ve gone the extra mile—or ten—to help customers in deep need. Marcie Bomberg, l...

The financial services industry has been dogged by lip service and a shaky track record regarding race, racism and keeping the promises made to consumers and employees of color. This special episode devotes half an hour to examining facts and findings that frame the current debate—while sharing, for the first time on any news outlet or podcast, the stranger-than-fiction story behind the $20 bill—a...

Chatbots were supposed to be a saving grace for financial institutions, but it didn’t take long for upset customers to discover that the bots often failed to answer the simplest of questions. They’ve made a mockery of customer experience”—instead multiplying aggravation, especially as people seek financial help during the COVID pandemic. The swashbuckling Lee Wetherington of Jack Henry & Associate...