Can Technology Make Financial Services More ‘Fair’?

The piece linked below claims that traditional financial services companies have been unfair to consumers, and that a new breed of tech-enabled companies are here to remedy that. But the claim of unfairness isn’t well supported here. These new companies aim to charge lower fees, and thereby provide genuine benefit, but the claim to virtue is an odd one, marketing ambitions aside. Isn’t this just the usual story of new technology enabling new competitors to enter the marketplace? >>>

LINK: How technology is making finance more fair (by Taavet Hinrikus for World Economic Forum Agenda)

…One industry where fairness is growing thanks to technology is finance. Traditional consumer finance has been unfair for decades. Banks have had a monopoly on financial services and have been able to overcharge and underserve consumers. In the UK, for instance, banks and brokers charge up to 5% of the money sent in hidden fees.

As traditional finance continues to underserve consumers, fintech (or financial technology) has emerged. Not bound by archaic systems like the banks, young tech companies are rapidly innovating in this space, often significantly undercutting the banks…..

What do you think?

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