AI Digital Transformation Banking Event MoneyLIVE

Key Takeaways from MoneyLIVE North America 2024

Team GFT had the pleasure of attending MoneyLIVE North America in Chicago, and heard from leaders at the forefront of the #fintech and banking industries.

October 23, 2024

Thomas Cozzolino

Chief Strategy Officer

Reading Time

min

MoneyLIVE North America 2024 was a fast-paced, two-day event showcasing the latest advances in banking and payments. Over 500 professionals attended, with 72% of the audience made up of C-Level suite executives, as well as presidents, directors or heads-of-department.

GFT were gold sponsors at MoneyLIVE North Americas for the second year in a row, an event that facilitates experts in banking and payments sectors in hosting private meetings and, at the same time, strengthen GFT’s existing relationships with clients and partners. Carlos Kazuo Missao, GFT’s Head of Innovation Solutions, Americas, joined the list of speakers at the annual event to share his expertise on the future of cross-border payments.

We observed three themes arose throughout the conference: Instant Payments, Cross-border Payments, and AI & Data.

Instant Payments

Everyone wants it, but there are many choices

There was more than ample opportunity to discuss instant payments at MoneyLIVE—both in formal sessions and in-person conversations. Most interesting was how many well-formed options there already are, including major players FedNow and Real Time Payments (RTP) and others, including:

Push-to-Card: Services like Visa Direct and Mastercard Send allow for real-time payments to be pushed directly to debit cards, offering another form of instant payment.
Digital Wallets: While not always instant, services like PayPal, Venmo and Cash App offer quick transfers between users and can be linked to bank accounts for faster withdrawals.
Blockchain-based Solutions: Some banks are developing private blockchain solutions for various payment types, including cross-border payments and liquidity management.
Zelle: A popular peer-to-peer payment service offered by many major U.S. banks. It allows for near-instant transfers between bank accounts.
Same Day ACH: This is an enhancement to the traditional Automated Clearing House (ACH) system that allows for faster processing of electronic funds transfers, typically within the same business day.

There’s clearly high interest across the payments space. GFT’s strong global track record in delivering payments-based projects around the world will help accelerate adoption with U.S. clients. This has become especially crucial as banks, from global players to credit unions, continue to focus on customer experience while managing costs and modernizing their portfolios.

A person uses a smartwatch to make a contactless payment at a self-service kiosk while holding a smartphone and shopping basket. — A shopper makes a contactless payment using a smartwatch at a self-service kiosk. Highlighting the convenience of wearable payment technology in retail environments.

A woman in a leather jacket makes a contactless payment with her smartphone at a retail store counter, demonstrating modern digital payment technology. — A woman using contactless payment technology with her smartphone at a retail store. Showcasing the ease and convenience of digital payments in everyday transactions.

A person uses a smartphone with a digital ticketing app to access a public transit gate, showcasing the use of mobile technology in transportation systems. — A commuter scans a mobile ticket at a public transit gate using smartphone technology. Demonstrating the efficiency and convenience of digital ticketing solutions in modern transportation networks.

Cross-Border Payments

Slow-going in the U.S., but there are some bright spots

Given recent official pronouncements from the U.S. Federal Reserve, there are no concrete plans for a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) for the U.S. In addition, the relatively new ISO 20022 regulations have yet to be widely implemented widespread in implementation across the country. Simply put, we believe that it will be at least 5-7 years before the U.S. will be able to meaningfully take advantage of the cross-border payment capabilities that other countries enjoy today at scale.

But while Americans wait for it, there are still some surprisingly innovative uses of existing infrastructure to provide cross-border payments, driven mostly by large banks and other global players. We heard about these and more at MoneyLIVE 2024’s cross-border payments roundtable session, featuring GFT’s Carlos Kazuo Missao. GFT’s project with Mastercard, XBS (Cross-border Services), for example, was discussed. XBS uses Mastercard’s global network to provide seamless cross-border payments at a lower cost than alternatives like SWIFT. It is being developed for adoption by banks.

GFT’s industry-leading Universal Digital Payments Network (UDPN), an interoperable global payments network for regulated digital currencies, including stablecoins and CBDCs, also came up as an example of what’s already available. This network handles regulated digital currencies across all technical platforms, and has a new Sandbox capability U.S. enterprises can use to experiment with cross-border payments.

Our numerous cross-border payment projects in Central and South America are continuing to evolve and grow to better serve our customers, and we’re actively monitoring the U.S. market as it evolves.

Smiling woman using a smartphone and holding a credit card for an online payment in a cafe. — A woman smiles as she uses her smartphone and credit card for an online payment in a cafe, illustrating the convenience and security of digital financial transactions.

Smiling businessman in a suit holding a smartphone in a city environment with modern buildings in the background. — businessman in a suit smiles while using his smartphone in a modern urban setting, representing mobile connectivity and professional communication in today's digital world.

AI & Data

Five areas of interest

AI and Data was infused throughout the conference, popping up in nearly every discussion and session. GFT’s observations confirmed MoneyLIVE’s audience survey, which highlighted five critical areas of interest:

Process Automation
AML and fraud detection
Cybersecurity and resilience
Credit decisioning
Customer Experience and Engagement

What Customers Want

Discussions with executives of leading banks and Fintech companies underscored a critical theme: customers want clarity in both approach and service. While most customers already have AI & Data transformation programs underway, few can point to quantifiable business outcomes. At GFT, our AI approach has always been pragmatic and focused on proving value based on established guardrails and measures from the ground up.

All in all, MoneyLIVE was a valuable and insightful event for GFT, and we look forward to more conversation, community and collaboration as we drive the future of Payments, Fintech and AI. And as one speaker wisely observed, “bring me a painkiller, not a vitamin!”

If you’d like to learn more about GFT and discuss your enterprise’s next-gen needs (and painkillers), please contact us below.

Let’s create your industry’s future.

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