The tools and platforms available today are expanding rapidly.  So rapidly that it is very hard to keep up. All the more reason that banks, at least all big banks, should have innovation centres that are solely focussed on pushing the envelope with this stuff.  We need to understand what this means and where the opportunities lie for transactional banking. This geeky article basically says that Google will produce Microsoft Office type functionality in an app that will work on your mobile device or your laptop.  The inference being that the files are stored in the cloud and are accessible … Continue reading Google’s way of pushing the limits of the Web as a platform

RBS sufferred another crash of their computer systems resulting in customers having no access to debit and credit card systems on Monday.  They are the only bank I am aware has their own wikipedia page devoted to their system problems. This latest crash was similar to June 2012 when millions were left without access to their money. RBS apologises for Cyber Monday technology breakdown The IT glitch – the bank’s fourth in two years – left millions of customers of RBS and its NatWest and Ulster bank subsidiaries unable to use credit and debit cards for three hours on Monday … Continue reading RBS system crash leaves customers without access to their money

I re-watched Inside Job again last night.  Its a brilliant documentary on the 2008 banking crisis, and recommended watching for anyone interested at all in just how bad was the situation that culminated in September 15th, 2008. So it was some ironical for me at least, that this morning the Economist Intelligence Unit came out with this new report.  As is usual with EIU there is lots of empirical evidence and this statistic leapt off the page at me.  More than half of bankers feel ethics get in the way of career progression.  This statistic alone suggests that bank leaders, … Continue reading “A Crisis of Culture” (in Banks) – new report from Economist Intelligence Unit

This is not new because Google was already using 1024 bit security but with this upgrade to 2048 bit, it is time for banks to at least re-visit their security level and offer exper commentary.  Most banks are using 128 bit (RBC for example) with some banks having already gone to 256 bit (Peoples Trust, Standard Chartered, Members Advantage Credit Union) The reason Google are doing this is based on concern that the American Government through the NSA are able to decrypt what we have assumed is secure data transmission. When internet started email and browsing activity was unencrypted and … Continue reading EDIT: This post is corrected – please review comments:- Your email is now orders of magnitude more secure than your online banking–is that right?

This announcement from Yahoo may sound innocuous but it has implications for the downrange targets of this blog, banks.  Our Commitment to Protecting Your Information | Yahoo.com Today we are announcing that we will extend that effort across all Yahoo products. More specifically this means we will: Encrypt all information that moves between our data centers by the end of Q1 2014; Offer users an option to encrypt all data flow to/from Yahoo by the end of Q1 2014; Work closely with our international Mail partners to ensure that Yahoo co-branded Mail accounts are https-enabled. Relevance to Bankwatch: Banks are … Continue reading Implications of internet giants network concerns for banks

Bitcoin is something I have been sceptical about.  I appreciate the mathematical and security wizardry involved but it still feels like a solution seeking a problem at this point.  Today Bitcoin received, from of all places, support from Bernanke and potentially from the US Senate with specific mention of Bitcoin as a future method of money transfer.  What? I cannot for the life of me think why they would even hint at such support for Bitcoin when they cannot even agree on something as mundane as converting to chip cards.  I makes one wonder if there is not some serious … Continue reading What can of worms has the US Fed opened in appearing to support Bitcoin?

In 2009 shortly after the banking crisis was unfolding, I wrote a piece on the danger of spreadsheets.  It turns out that danger costs in the billions.  The siren call of Microsoft Excel In January 2012, losses on a derivatives portfolio that ultimately cost the bank more than $6bn stood at a mere $100m. A review team at that time identified that an important risk calculation for the portfolio was error-prone. Spreadsheets offer a fabulous and awe inspiring power to produce analysis and presentation of numbers that is hitherto unforeseen. The power lies in the functions that allow rapid calculation … Continue reading Spreadsheets–the power and the glory

There is a payments conference on this week in Toronto, and its asking the right question about the future;  What new technologies and products will fundamentally change the way we interact with the payments system?  I would go further and add to “technologies and products”, what companies, e.g. Stripe.  Only by looking at examples will the participants start to see the true potential for change. The Canadian Payments System: Ensuring Stability, Increasing Efficiency and Balancing Interests Session VI – Innovations, Implications, and Next Steps for the Payments Sector Innovations: What new technologies and products will fundamentally change the way we … Continue reading What new technologies and products will fundamentally change the way we interact with the payments system? | CD Howe Conference Toronto