Independent Banker - July 2020 - 46

3 ways to make the most
of fintech
The finalists of ICBA's ThinkTECH Accelerator reveal how
community banks can best approach working with fintechs.
Be strategic about your choices
Community bankers should anchor their fintech strategy
with wider bank objectives.
" Few community banks actually have a predetermined, written
strategy with an associated budget for how they're going
to achieve their strategic goals and objectives, " says Wallit
founder and CEO Michael Vien in Westbrook, Maine.
After developing an innovation strategy and budget, don't
get " enamored with the bright and shiny, " says Keith Henkel
of FI Works in Little Rock, Ark., meaning that whatever fintech
a banker chooses should be tied to that plan. " There's some
really cool tech out there, slicker than anything you've ever
seen before, " he adds, " but can you match that to one of your
top initiatives? "
2
Form your A-team
The staff a community bank uses to assess and manage
its fintech relationships should include both longtime
executives and others with their eyes toward the future. They'll
bring different perspectives on technology to the table. " If a
technology person who is forward-thinking is not reporting to
the board, then that bank is going to be falling behind, " says
Booshan Rengachari of Finzly in Charlotte, N.C. He adds that if
a community bank can, it should hire a chief innovation officer.
3
Grow from your weakness
The first area to start, fintech experts say, is where you
have weakness. " The best thing that banks can do is to
recognize where they have flaws and partner with companies
or hire people internally that can provide a strength, " says
Donald Hawkins of Griffin Technologies in Overland Park, Kan.
Rengachari says Finzly first tries to be an adviser to
community bankers to see if they can help where the banks
have hurdles. " We try to be an adviser. Tell us your biggest
challenges, and we'll propose some options for you, " he adds.
" If our solution is not the right solution for [a banker], we just
tell them. "
1
to fraud protection and financial
wellness. Their perspectives on the
industry also shed light on what's
ahead for community banks and
how they can best prepare for it.
They see an industry on the cusp of
adopting data-driven digital tools
to outperform the competition and
further strengthen the customer
relationships at the core of
community banks.
Big data means big value
To fintechs, data is like digital gold.
And community banks generate
a lot of it. They're sitting on years
and years of institutional data, but
many don't know what to do with it.
Some even see data management as
a chore, as it takes work and money
to keep it safeguarded. In the coming
years, fintechs suggest that outlook
will change. As Yogesh Pandit, CEO
of Hexanika in New York City, says,
" Data is the new oil.
" As we spoke to more community
banks, we realized that data has
not been considered a key asset. In
fact, community banks consider it a
liability, " says Pandit, whose company
offers software that automates
end-to-end data management and
compliance. " It's important that banks
understand the power of data and how
it can help them further strengthen
relationships with their customers,
which is their true strength. "
The reason data is so valuable
to both fintechs and community
banks is that they can use it to
better understand who their existing
or potential customers are and,
ultimately, drive revenue. It can
tell them what kind of purchases
customers make or may be about to
make, or the risks of offering them
a loan, which can help acquisition,
deposits and decision-making. Data
connects the dots. " Banks can know
46 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q July 2020
Independent Banker - July 2020

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