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Author: Amy Sariego

Trending Topics: What Does 2023 Hint About 2024?

PODCAST

Trending Topics:
What Does 2023 Hint About 2024?

We’re using 2023 hindsight to predict the biggest trends in financial services for 2024.

For our first episode of Season 2, our Provenir hosts share their insights on the biggest lessons from 2023 and gaze into their crystal balls to forecast what 2024 might look like across the industry. 

Listen in for the unique, on-the-ground perspectives from hosts Kathy Stares for North America, Bharath Vellore for APAC, and José Vargas for LatAm. 

From digitization, to credit inclusion, to operationalizing technology – and, yes, AI – our leaders break down the nuances in their regions and the trends you can’t miss.

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The Panelists:

  • Kathy Stares

    Kathy Stares is the Executive Vice President of North America at Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software. As a member of Provenir’s executive team, she is introducing creative account management approaches to support the company’s aggressive growth strategy.

    Kathy brings more than 20 years of experience in fintech and has a deep knowledge and curiosity about risk decisioning innovation. She’s passionate about helping organizations leverage data and technology to build world-class experiences for their customers.

    Prior to joining Provenir, Kathy was Chief Customer Officer at enStream, Canada’s provider of mobile verification services. Kathy received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto and attained the Women of Influence certificate. Kathy also volunteers for the Menttium organization.

  • Bharath Vellore

    As General Manager of Asia-Pacific at Provenir, Bharath is spearheading the effort to expand Provenir’s presence in the region. He is driving the company’s strategy to quickly increase engagement with the growing number of fintechs and innovative banks seeking access to industry-leading data and AI-powered risk decisioning software for real-time credit decisioning. Vellore oversee all regional business operations including sales, pre-sales, professional services, and customer success.

    Bharath brings more than 15 years of experience working with Financial Services driving revenue growth, regional expansion and business development. Prior to joining Provenir, Vellore held leadership positions at LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Dow Jones.

  • José Vargas

    José Vargas is the executive vice president and general manager for Provenir Latin America. In this role, Vargas is responsible for leading Provenir’s ambitious expansion plans to triple its footprint in the region.

    During his career, José has built and led successful sales, business development and consulting teams. He is passionate about financial inclusion, technology and inspiring a high-performance culture.

    Prior to joining Provenir, Jose served in various leadership positions at FICO including Senior Business Consultant in Americas and Asia, Regional Senior Director in LAC, and Vice President & Managing Director for Western Europe & Israel. Prior to joining FICO, José spent five years in the financial services industry of Mexico and Latin-America working for Scotiabank and Citibank.

  • Kathy Stares

    Kathy Stares is the Executive Vice President of North America at Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software. As a member of Provenir’s executive team, she is introducing creative account management approaches to support the company’s aggressive growth strategy.

    Kathy brings more than 20 years of experience in fintech and has a deep knowledge and curiosity about risk decisioning innovation. She’s passionate about helping organizations leverage data and technology to build world-class experiences for their customers.

    Prior to joining Provenir, Kathy was Chief Customer Officer at enStream, Canada’s provider of mobile verification services. Kathy received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto and attained the Women of Influence certificate. Kathy also volunteers for the Menttium organization.

  • Bharath Vellore

    As General Manager of Asia-Pacific at Provenir, Bharath is spearheading the effort to expand Provenir’s presence in the region. He is driving the company’s strategy to quickly increase engagement with the growing number of fintechs and innovative banks seeking access to industry-leading data and AI-powered risk decisioning software for real-time credit decisioning. Vellore oversee all regional business operations including sales, pre-sales, professional services, and customer success.

    Bharath brings more than 15 years of experience working with Financial Services driving revenue growth, regional expansion and business development. Prior to joining Provenir, Vellore held leadership positions at LexisNexis Risk Solutions and Dow Jones.

  • José Vargas

    José Vargas is the executive vice president and general manager for Provenir Latin America. In this role, Vargas is responsible for leading Provenir’s ambitious expansion plans to triple its footprint in the region.

    During his career, José has built and led successful sales, business development and consulting teams. He is passionate about financial inclusion, technology and inspiring a high-performance culture.

    Prior to joining Provenir, Jose served in various leadership positions at FICO including Senior Business Consultant in Americas and Asia, Regional Senior Director in LAC, and Vice President & Managing Director for Western Europe & Israel. Prior to joining FICO, José spent five years in the financial services industry of Mexico and Latin-America working for Scotiabank and Citibank.


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Buy vs. Build in APAC – Why “Buy” is the Right Choice for Risk Decisioning Software

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Buy vs. Build in APAC – 
Why “Buy” is the Right Choice for Risk Decisioning Software

  • Allison Karavos

In today’s fast-paced business landscape, making informed and timely decisions is critical to success. This is especially true when it comes to risk decisioning, a process vital for mitigating threats and maximizing opportunities. As businesses in APAC consider their options for risk decisioning software, a common debate arises: should they buy an off-the-shelf solution or build a custom one? In this blog post, we will explore the reasons why “buy” is the right choice for risk decisioning software in the APAC.

Speed to Market

One of the most compelling reasons to opt for a pre-built risk decisioning solution is the speed it offers. Developing custom software from scratch can be a time-consuming process but in today’s fast-paced business environment, agility is essential. Thankfully, a variety of pre-built software solutions are readily available and can be implemented in as little as three months depending on your vendor.

Cost-Effectiveness

Building a custom risk decisioning solution can be a costly endeavor. It involves not only development expenses but also ongoing maintenance and support. On the other hand, buying an established software solution typically comes with a more predictable cost structure, including licensing fees, maintenance contracts, and support agreements. For many APAC businesses, this cost-effective approach makes it easier to manage their budgets.

Proven Expertise

When you buy a pre-built risk decisioning software, you gain access to the expertise of the software vendor. These vendors specialize in their field and continuously improve their solutions. They have extensive experience in risk management, compliance, and data analysis, which is hard to replicate in-house. Relying on their expertise can help APAC businesses make better risk decisions and navigate complex regulatory environments effectively.

Scalability

As your business grows, your risk decisioning needs may change. Third-party solutions are often designed to be scalable, making it easier to adapt to changing business demands. In contrast, custom-built software may require extensive redevelopment and modification to accommodate growth. For APAC businesses looking to scale and adapt quickly, “buy” is the more flexible choice.

Integration

Modern businesses rely on a multitude of software applications for various functions. A significant advantage of third-party risk decisioning software is its compatibility with other systems. It’s designed to integrate seamlessly with popular CRM, ERP, and other tools, which is especially important in APAC, where businesses often depend on a mix of applications to run their operations smoothly.

Compliance and Security

The regulatory environment in APAC is continuously evolving, with strict data protection laws and industry-specific compliance requirements. Buying risk decisioning software often means that your system will be equipped with the latest compliance features and security protocols. This can save your business the headache of constantly monitoring and adapting to regulatory changes.

Updates and Maintenance

Software, like any other asset, requires maintenance and updates to remain effective. When you buy risk decisioning software, you can rely on the software vendor to provide regular updates and maintenance support. This ensures your system stays up-to-date and secure, without requiring extensive in-house resources.

Conclusion:

While the decision to buy or build risk decisioning software ultimately depends on the unique needs of each APAC business, there are strong reasons why “buy” is often the preferred choice. Speed to market, cost-effectiveness, access to expertise, scalability, integration, compliance, and ongoing support make third-party solutions the pragmatic option for many. When time is of the essence, and resources are limited, a pre-built risk decisioning solution can provide the competitive edge APAC businesses need to make informed decisions in today’s complex world of risk management.

If buying still seems overwhelming, be sure to check out our comprehensive Buyer’s Guide for risk decisioning platforms.

Learn how we can help you manage risk and maximize value at onboarding.

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Named 2024 FSTech Award Finalist

A pioneering leader in consumer credit in the UK recognised for excellence and innovation in the ‘Best Use of IT in Consumer Finance’ category

LONDON, UK – January 17, 2024 – Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software, today congratulated NewDay for being named a 2024 FSTech finalist in the ‘Best use of IT in Consumer Finance’ category.

FStech Awards spotlight companies excelling in the UK and EMEA financial services sector. The ‘Best Use of IT in Consumer Finance’ category recognises organisations for their innovative use of technology to achieve significant cost benefits, streamline internal processes, enhance customer service and lay the foundation for future success. FSTech Award winners, selected by independent expert judges, will be revealed at the FSTech Awards 2024 Gala on March 14th at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square.

NewDay is a leading provider of consumer credit in the UK, providing more than 4 million customers responsible access to credit. With an emphasis on technology-enabled flexibility and innovation, NewDay offers direct-to-consumer products as well as collaborations with merchants. Their Merchant Offering includes co-branded credit cards and Newpay, a flexible digital finance product catering to both large retailers and SMEs, with Buy Now Pay Later and instalment finance options.

By leveraging Provenir’s AI-Powered Risk Decisioning Platform, NewDay is able to streamline every step of its lending process to create an end-to-end, fully integrated solution that extends across the entire credit lifecycle from originations through to management of charged-off and debt-sold accounts. The integration of Provenir with NewDay’s extensive data lake accelerated a sophisticated and data-rich model environment. This has enabled NewDay to achieve faster delivery cycles, allowing the delivery of multiple changes within the same sprint. The end result is a service team that can drive change in the business quickly to respond to market pressures, customer needs and industry trends.

Implementing Provenir’s AI-powered risk decisioning platform has revolutionised NewDay’s credit risk management, enhancing processes, reducing costs, and improving customer experiences. By partnering with Provenir, NewDay has experienced a 13% increase in auto loan accept rate, a 46% increase in referral accept rate, speed of change reduced by 80%, incident detection reduced from more than 2 hours to less than 5 minutes and an increased product exposure on aggregator sites from 2 products to 13 all with real-time quote and decisioning, providing NewDay with a competitive advantage.

“We would like to extend our congratulations to NewDay on being named as a FSTech Award finalist in the ‘Best use of IT in the Consumer Finance Category,”stated Frode Berg, Managing Director, EMEA at Provenir. “At Provenir, we take pride in our supportive role within NewDay’s credit risk management and are delighted that this collaboration has positioned NewDay for future technological advancements under its ‘NewTech’ initiative, setting a benchmark for strategic technology use in consumer finance.”

“Provenir’s solution has been an excellent addition to NewDay’s tech stack,” said Mandy Sumner, Head of Strategic and Operational Implementation at NewDay. “The platform’s advanced data analytics capabilities have allowed us to make faster, more accurate risk decisions, improving customer experiences and operational efficiency. Provenir’s commitment to innovation and continuous improvement has been instrumental in our success. We are proud to partner with Provenir and recommend their solution to any organisation seeking to unlock the power of their data.”

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While better economic news is on the horizon, there are indicators that financial service providers need to pay close attention to in order to serve their customers in turbulent times.

Fintech.ca sat down with Cheryl Woodburn, Country Manager of Canada for Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software, to talk about everything from data and strategy to fraud and risk mitigation.

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AI-Powered Risk Decisioning Leader Provenir Adds Chief People Officer Lori Copeland to Executive Team

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Provenir Adds Chief People Officer Lori Copeland to Executive Team

ndustry veteran brings more than 20 years’ experience in human resources leadership and talent acquisition to the fintech leader

Parsippany, NJ –Jan. 9, 2024 – Provenir, a global leader in AI-powered risk decisioning software, today announced the appointment of Lori Copeland as Chief People Officer.

In this role, Copeland will be responsible for developing and executing human resource strategy in support of the overall business plan and strategic direction of the organization. She will provide leadership and guidance to all HR functions and develop recruiting plans to bring new talent to expand Provenir’s workforce, which spans 25 countries across the globe.

A senior human resources executive with more than 20 years’ experience, Copeland has proven ability to engage key stakeholders, deliver results and drive initiatives across complex global matrix organizations. Prior to joining Provenir, Copeland was Global Vice President, Human Resources, with LGC, a private equity owned leading, global life science technology company. Prior to this, Copeland was Global Human Resources Leader at General Electric (GE), Digital, a growth IoT startup within GE.

“Lori has an impressive background in human resources and organizational development and brings a dynamic blend of passion and expertise to our leadership team,” said Larry Smith, Founder and CEO of Provenir. “Lori’s leadership will be instrumental in supporting our people operations and cultivating a high-impact workforce as we grow.” “I am excited to join Provenir as the company grows globally and invests in its employee base to deliver innovative solutions to the financial services market,” said Copeland. “As Provenir continues to deliver the technology to power financial institution and fintech success worldwide, I look forward to growing and nurturing the company’s biggest asset – its people.”

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As banks grapple with increasing pressure to better manage their credit books to properly vet customers before granting them loans, effective deployment of the power of decisioning and advanced data analytics can help them to increase their competitiveness and reduce their risk exposure.

In this exclusive podcast with RegTech Africa, Adrian Pillay, Vice President of MEA for Provenir, shares his insights on lending and credit risk trends across Africa, how AI can contribute to the transformation of the credit risk process, the consumer data protection movement and current/impending legislation and regulations across Africa.

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Consumer Duty, a set of rules aimed at enhancing consumer protection in the UK financial services sector, came into force in July 2023. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) new rules mean that firms selling financial products now have to meet much higher standards.

In this Fintech Times article, Carol Hamilton, Chief Product Officer at Provenir, joins other experts across the fintech industry in sharing predictions for 2024, including a collective focus on collaboration between fintech firms and traditional banks, driven by a commitment to enhance customer benefits, transparency and personalisation.

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2024 Global Risk Decisioning Survey: North America Special Edition

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What’s top of mind for financial services providers heading into 2024?

Provenir surveyed more than 300 decision makers from a variety of financial services providers and fintechs around the globe in order to understand their:

  • Risk decisioning challenges
  • Customer management priorities
  • Confidence in the accuracy and flexibility of their risk models and anti-fraud measures

This special North America edition includes 2024 opportunities for providers in the region from Provenir’s Executive Vice President of North America, Kathy Stares. She covers:

  • Widespread adoption of AI
  • Democratizing data
  • Digital payment evolution

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