An in-depth look at the winners of the inaugural Deloitte Financial Services Innovation Awards

Faced with a wave of disruptive new entrants looking to encroach on its territory using technology, the financial services sector is embracing innovation in order to adapt to a fast-changing environment. And adapt it must: as Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric said,

when the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near.
 

In little over three decades, Ireland has grown into a global financial services hub: 20 of the world’s top 25 financial services companies, 17 of the top 20 global banks and 11 of the world’s top 15 insurance companies have a presence here. All told, there are more than 400 financial services companies in Ireland, employing over 40,000 people.

Ireland also hosts some of the biggest names in technology, and the sector employs more than 105,000 people. Between 2016 and 2018, Dublin attracted the seventh highest number of tech startup foreign direct investment projects globally, according to FDI Intelligence.

These two sectors are converging, and it’s leading to unprecedented levels of innovation. To recognise and celebrate this effect, this year Deloitte held its inaugural Financial Services Innovation Awards programme, in partnership with Financial Services Ireland and Banking and Payments Federation Ireland.
 

The financial services industry is changing, and changing rapidly. New entrants, new technologies, and changing customer expectations are driving financial services companies to evolve how their businesses and processes work. As a result, we are seeing some very strong innovations, collaborations and technology applications that are transforming the industry and bringing customer centricity to the forefront of agendas,

says David Dalton, Partner and Head of Financial Services at Deloitte Ireland. Explaining the rationale for creating the awards, he added:
 

We’re seeing a level of innovation in the financial services industry and an ecosystem in Ireland not seen before, and this is establishing Ireland as a hub for innovation internationally. We think those pioneering this innovation should be recognised, not only to showcase the strength of the financial services industry in Ireland in the global marketplace, but also to highlight the potential for learning across the industry for the benefit of all. It’s about recognising ideas, rewarding innovation and making an impact.
 

David Dalton was one of the six-person judging panel that also included Julie Sinnamon, CEO of Enterprise Ireland; Brian Hayes, CEO of the BPFI; Joe Duffy, Chair of FSI Executive Board and Country Executive for BNY Mellon in Ireland; Ciaran Hancock, Business Editor with The Irish Times; and Mai Santamaria, Head of the Financial Advisory Team at the Department of Finance. More than 100 submissions were received for the awards, which comprised of nine categories, including an overall winner.

In this article, we take a closer look at the winners in each category and hear directly from them about what made their ideas resonate not only with the judges, but with the market and their customers.