Klarna Launches New Subscription Service– Is It Worth It?

Klarna Launches New Subscription Service– Is It Worth It?
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Klarna
  • Klarna launched Klarna Plus, a subscription tool that offers users premium benefits and access to exclusive offers.
  • For $7.99, users receive extra rewards points, a waived service fee for purchases made at retailers that are not in the fintech’s network, and exclusive discounts at retailers.
  • Klarna counts 150 million active users who make two million transactions every day using its platform.

The subscription economy has been gaining steam since Netflix was founded in 1997. With news this week that buy now, pay later (BNPL) player Klarna is jumping on board, it is apparent the subscription trend is not dying out any time soon.

Yesterday, the fintech unveiled Klarna Plus, the company’s subscription service for its U.S. users. For $7.99 per month, users receive premium benefits that offer Klarna shoppers access to a variety of offers and deals.

“Today marks an exciting milestone for Klarna with the introduction of our first-ever premium subscription service, Klarna Plus,” said Klarna Chief Marketing Officer David Sandstrom. “Our research indicates that dedicated Klarna users are looking for an enhanced shopping experience through a subscription model. Klarna Plus addresses this demand, allowing us to deepen our engagement with 37 million loyal U.S. consumers, while also further diversifying a portfolio of payment and shopping solutions.”

What do users receive for $7.99?

  • Rewards points
    Users accrue two rewards points for every $1 spent on purchases with Klarna Rewards Club. This is double the 1 point for every $1 spent that rewards club members traditionally receive.
  • Waived service fees
    The service fees that users incur at retailers outside of Klarna’s network are waived when they pay using their Klarna One Time Card.
  • Exclusive deals
    Users gain access to special discounts at retailers including Nike COACH, Macy’s, Instacart, and GOAT.
  • Sign-up offer
    Users receive $8 off their first Klarna Plus purchase.

Like all subscriptions, this one is only worth the price tag if the user actually uses the service. Here’s a breakdown of each incentive:

  • Rewards points
    The rewards points are valued at $0.02, and they can only be exchanged for gift cards at a limited number of brands, including Starbucks, Sephora, Foot Locker, and Uber. Receiving an extra point per dollar under Klarna Plus would require spending around $400 each month to make up for the $7.99 monthly fee.
  • Waived service fee
    As far as having the service fee waived, Klarna users face a $1 to $2 transaction fee when they make purchases outside of Klarna’s retailer network. This means users would need to transact at these outside retailers anywhere from four to seven times each month to make the monthly fee worth the cost.
  • Exclusive deals
    It is difficult to place a dollar number on the value of exclusive deals, since people have varying relationships with high-profile brands such as Nike and COACH. That said, this benefit may be the most effective in attracting users. Loyalty program members will receive monthly deals valued at $6 at five selected stores for a maximum benefit of $30 per month.
  • Sign-up offer
    For users who are not brand-forward, the more thrifty shoppers may be drawn in by Klarna’s $8 coupon. It is essentially allowing them to trial their first month for free.

Klarna has built up its shopping marketplace to compete with that of Amazon. The company works with more than half a million retail partners who list goods across a range of categories, including health, clothing, toys, beauty, photography, and more. Klarna counts 150 million shoppers– 40 million of which are U.S. based– who make two million transactions using its platform each day.

Klarna was founded in 2005 and has been transforming itself from strictly a BNPL company into a shopping ecosystem with goods from more than 500,000 retailers across the globe. Last year, the Sweden-based company extended its partnership with Adyen, announcing that it will leverage Adyen’s acquiring capabilities to power card payments for its end users.

Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Unsplash

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Kevin Dinino of KCD PR Joins the Finovate Podcast

Kevin Dinino of KCD PR Joins the Finovate Podcast
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Interview, Podcasting, Speaker series

This week on the Finovate Podcast, Finovate VP and podcast host Greg Palmer sat down with fintech strategist, host of the Cyber Insiders Podcast, and owner of PR firm KCD PR, Kevin Dinino.

Dinino is founder and President of KCD PR, one of the top ranked public relations and marketing firms with an emphasis on financial services, fintech, technology, and transportation. He manages the day-to-day business operations for the firm, and leads business development while providing strategic counsel to clients on high profile issues.

Dinino is also host of Cyber Insiders, an iHeartRadio podcast series that features industry leaders involved in the cybersecurity industry.

In his Finovate Podcast interview, Dinino talks with host Greg Palmer about the “wonders and blunders” from 2023. Dinino also shares his ideas about what to expect from the world of fintech and financial services in 2024.

Last year was really quite an eventful year in terms of fintech and banking. Look at the Super Bowl last year to kick of 2023. We had TV commercials with the amazing Larry David in it for FTX and, in the ad, the irony of the campaign was that it was called Don’t Miss Out. And his character was like, ‘Eh, maybe I don’t want to do that’.

So it’s hard not to lump in what happened with crypto in general last year. Various scandals, FTX, and everything that happened with SBF probably being among the bigger ones, for sure. There was plenty on the ‘blunder’ side with that.

Check out Episode 201 of the Finovate Podcast and the rest of the conversation featuring Greg Palmer and Kevin Dinino of KCD PR.

Photo by Seej Nguyen

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1Kosmos Unveils its BlockID 1Key Solution for Mobile-Free Passwordless Authentication

1Kosmos Unveils its BlockID 1Key Solution for Mobile-Free Passwordless Authentication
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: 1Kosmos, Alumni News, Daily news
  • Identity and authentication platform 1Kosmos launched its BlockID 1Key solution this week.
  • BlockID 1Key is a biometric security key that provides passwordless multi-factor authentication for customer help desks, retail bank branches, and other environments deemed too sensitive to allow access to mobile devices.
  • 1Kosmos won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2023.

Blockchain-powered identity and authentication platform 1Kosmos launched its BlockID 1Key solution this week. BlockID 1Key is a biometric security key that provides passwordless multi-factor authentication for Senstive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIF). The phishing-resistant solution also works for manufacturing clean rooms, customer help desks, retail bank branches and other environments deemed too sensitive to allow access to mobile devices.

“Passwordless is extremely difficult and costly to deploy in environments such as call centers and manufacturing floors where mobile devices aren’t permitted or used,” 1Kosmos CEO Hemen Vimadalal said. “BlockID 1Key eliminates this roadblock and provides a phishing-resistant, scalable and interoperable passwordless experience for workers in dynamically assigned workspace settings – using a stationary, one-to-many FIDO-compliant key.”

BlockID 1Key enables organizations to verify identity at the initial access attempt and at every subsequent access attempt. This helps defend against attacks like phishing and vishing that exploit password vulnerabilities. The technology also secures the registered biometric to create an immutable chain of custody. Once secured, the biometric provides identity verification that is tamper-evident, and credentials that are phishing-resistant.

The technology is also suitable for workstation-independent contexts. BlockID 1Key’s register-once-use anywhere model lets users authenticate and work on any managed device. All they need is their username and a biometric fingerprint scan. The solution features support for Windows login as well, and is compatible with WebAuthn services and applications.

1Kosmos won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring last year, and returned to the Finovate stage last September for FinovateFall. Headquartered in East Brunswick, New Jersey, 1Kosmos has raised $15 million in funding, according to Crunchbase. The company includes Gula Tech Adventures and Forgepoint Capital among its investors.

Photo by Alexander Grey

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Europe’s Financial Future: 5 Key Agenda Topics

Europe’s Financial Future: 5 Key Agenda Topics
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2024, List series, Thought Leadership

The European financial services scene is continuously evolving thanks to the pulse of innovation, technological shifts, and advances in consumer expectations. As we stand on the cusp of next month’s FinovateEurope conference, it’s not merely the agenda that awaits, but deep-diving discussions surrounding the pressing issues and new developments waiting to change the continent’s trajectory.

Here, I’m taking a look beyond the conference halls and delving into five agenda items to consider why the topics matter in 2024, how they fit into the landscape, and why I’m excited about them.

Will AI Be More Profound Than The Invention Of The Internet? What Do Financial Institutions Really Need To Understand About Generative AI?

It’s not difficult to understand why Generative AI (Gen AI) is on the top of the agenda for FinovateEurope this year. The topic spiked in conversations following the release of Chat GPT in late 2022 and hasn’t receded since. Gen AI has applications across every financial services sub-sector (and beyond) and holds the potential for major cost savings opportunities. I’m eager to hear what the speaker, Nina Schick, has to say about applications of the technology within financial services and the relatively new threat of deepfakes.

Keynote Address: From Crypto Ice Age To Crypto Winter To Crypto Spring?

For those who still feel like we are in the middle of crypto winter (the downturn in the crypto space) it may seem irrelevant to bring up the topic to a roomful of bankers. However, we started to see a rise in activity surrounding decentralized finance (DeFi) late last year. This session’s speaker, Jillian Godsil, is an award winning journalist, author and broadcaster at Coin Telegraph. She’ll be offering her take on risks and opportunities in the space; what it will take to build a new, internet-native financial system; and how regulators are feeling about crypto. DeFi holds immense potential for financial services and I’m excited to hear Godsil’s inside view.

From Competition To Collaboration & Co-Creation – Why Financial institutions Need More Than Ever To Build Strategic Partnerships.

Whether you’re a bank or a fintech, you don’t need me to explain to you the importance of partnerships. The fintech industry has shifted its mentality from coopetition to collaboration and today, the financial services realm is completely reliant on partnerships. New to the discussion– and much of why I am interested in this age-old topic– is the threat that increased regulatory scrutiny may pose. Moderating this panel discussion is Rashee Pandey, Associate Director of Membership at Innovate Finance.

Digital Payments Are Eating The World – How Will New Competitors & New Business Models Shape The Future?

Regardless of your location, income, or social status, payments are– and always will be– relevant. And with the entire globe as your potential user base, getting into the payments game can be lucrative if done correctly. With new technologies and fresh consumer expectations, however, the payments landscape is changing. I am eagerly anticipating the discussion, led by Andrew Steele, Partner at Activant Capital, around new competitors and business models.

Transforming Lending In The Cost Of Living Crisis

Europe’s cost of living crisis is no secret. The cost of housing, combined with the cost of basic necessities such as groceries and medications, have caused both end consumers and large corporations alike to adjust their habits. Lending has always been an integral element to consumers’ lives, and today’s high interest rate environment, combined with consumers’ increased use of credit, complicates this scene. I’m looking forward to hearing from Jack Spiers, U.K, Banking and Lending Sales Director at Tink, on how traditional affordability models are cutting consumers short and how data can repair the issues.

Now that you have a sneak peek at the FinovateEurope agenda, consider this your formal invitation to join us at the conference, taking place 27 and 28 February at the Intercontinental O2 in London. Register today to save.

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Tink Unveils Risk Signals to Help Prevent Fraud and Reduce Settlement Risk

Tink Unveils Risk Signals to Help Prevent Fraud and Reduce Settlement Risk
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Tink
  • Open banking company Tink has launched its new rules-based risk engine, Risk Signals.
  • Risk Signals leverages account, transaction, and payment data to help prevent fraud and lower settlement risk.
  • Tink won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2014.

Open banking company Tink launched its new rules-based risk engine, Risk Signals this week. Risk Signals leverages account, transaction, and payment data to help prevent fraud and lower settlement risk.

“Risk Signals is an ideal fit for businesses looking to offer a secure and fast payment method especially in markets without real-time settlement – like Germany,” TInk SVP of Payments and Platforms Tom Pope explained. “With Tink’s Risk Signals, you no longer need to compromise between a fast checkout and reducing risk.”

Risk Signal features a suite of risk checks that are customizable to both financial institution and market. These risk checks include verifications of live balances to ensure a user’s ability to pay, transaction history review (including a review of previous non-settled payments), and velocity checks to identify suspicious transaction activity. Tink reports that firms such as payment service provider (PSP) Adyen are already using the solution. Additionally, the company said businesses have been able to fully implement Risk Signals within a week. In part, this is because Tink configures Risk Signals as a service, requiring no integration from the customer.

“By leveraging the real-time risk analysis during payment processes, Adyen can offer a payment option that not only ensures security and reliability but also aligns perfectly with both merchants’ and shoppers’ expectations,” Adyen Payment Partnerships Lead for Europe Dirk Jan Meijers said.

A two-time Finovate Best of Show winning company, Tink first won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2014. The Stockholm, Sweden-based company returned to the FinovateEurope stage three years later to take home its second Best of Show award.

In the years since, Tink has grown into an open banking leader. The company has 6,000+ connections to major banks in Europe, and 10,000 developers using its platform. Founded in 2012, Tink processes more than 10 billion transactions a year, and is active in 18 markets. The company was acquired by Visa in 2022 in a deal valued at $2.1. billion (€1.8 billion). Daniel Kjellén is CEO.

Interested in demoing at FinovateEurope in London next month? We are happy to read applications from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateEurope hub today to learn more.

Photo by Allan Mas

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Visa’s Cybersource and Ingenico to Create a Global Commerce Solution

Visa’s Cybersource and Ingenico to Create a Global Commerce Solution
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, VISA
  • Visa’s Cybersource is partnering with payment acceptance company Ingenico.
  • The two will leverage Ingenico’s Android-based AXIUM system, along with Cybersource’s open payment platform, to launch an all-in-one global commerce solution.
  • The aim of the new commerce solution is to reduce costs and complexities associated with technical integrations, increase speed to market, and provide omni-channel capabilities.

France-based payment acceptance company Ingenico announced it has partnered with Visa’s Cybersource. The two are leveraging Ingenico’s Android-based AXIUM system, combined with Cybersource’s open payment platform, to create a unified global commerce solution.  

Ingenico’s AXIUM offers a range of point-of-sale (POS) terminals, along with a suite of business applications. The new unified commerce solution will be available on all AXIUM devices, which will allow for an easy way to scale without having to go through a certification process for each new device.​

Cybersource, Visa’s agnostic global payment and fraud management platform, is part of Visa Acceptance Solutions, a connectivity hub that provides acquirers, independent software vendors, and merchants with access to what they need to create scalable commerce experiences. Crafting a global solution with real-time transaction visibility and data analytics helps acquirers focus on card clearance and settlement. Because the solution leverages both Ingenico’s and Cybersource’s ecosystems, it also allows acquirers to expand into new merchant segments.

“Combining the global reach of Visa and Ingenico and using the Ingenico Android technology stack, will accelerate innovation and reduce complexity,” said Ingenico Chief Customer Officer Nigel Lee. “We believe together we can reduce time to market for customers and allow our clients and partners to realise the benefits of a truly unified omnichannel solution. This is a significant step in our vision to move commerce forward by harnessing the collective strengths of our combined technologies and networks.”

Under today’s partnership, Cybersource will be able to provide a ready-to-use commerce solution that can authorize in-store card transactions across international borders. Ultimately, the two companies aim to use the new global commerce solution to reduce costs and complexities associated with technical integrations, increase speed to market, and provide omni-channel capabilities that suit both consumers and businesses.

Founded in 1980, Ingenico works with more than 1,000 banks and acquirers in more than 37 countries. With 4,000 employees, the company helps power 2,500 payment apps and 40 million terminals across the globe. Last year, Ingenico partnered with Fujitsu Frontech to launch a new solution that authenticates customer identities and facilitates payment using the palm of their hand for in-person transactions.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

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ModernFi Raises $18.7 Million for its API-Driven Deposit Network

ModernFi Raises $18.7 Million for its API-Driven Deposit Network
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Funding
  • ModernFi raised $18.7 million, boosting its total to $23.2 million.
  • Canapi Ventures led the round, which ModernFi will use to market its platform to community and regional banks.
  • ModernFi’s API-driven deposit network helps banks raise, maintain, and manage their deposits.

API-driven deposit network ModernFi boosted its funding total to $23.2 million today after landing $18.7 million in Series A funding. The company will use the funds to market its platform to community and regional banks.

Canapi Ventures led the round, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz and Remarkable Ventures. Three banks, including Huntington National Bank, First Horizon, and Regions, also contributed.

ModernFi’s deposit growth solutions offer an API-driven approach that helps financial institutions efficiently raise and manage deposits. The company helps banks identify and entice potential depositors using personalized marketing campaigns, easy onboarding experiences, competitive interest rates, flexible account options, and by offering depositors extended insurance.

The company reduces reliance on manual processes and built its deposit network on a modern tech stack, which reduces friction for end users and facilitates integration for banks.

Today’s high interest rate environment, combined with the shift toward real-time money movement in the U.S., have changed both the speed and stability of consumer deposits. These factors, combined with increased regulatory scrutiny on liquidity and funding, have required financial institutions to change how they manage their deposits. “Deposit management is a key priority for the banking sector right now,” explained First Horizon Bank Director of Transformation – Fintech & Emerging Technology Tyler Craft. “ModernFi’s technology to streamline onboarding and operations for depositors and banks provides an innovative additional way for our industry to serve clients.”

“Community and regional banks form the foundation of the American economy, providing an outsized amount of credit and banking services to critical industries and areas that might otherwise be overlooked,” said ModernFi CEO and Cofounder Paolo Bertolotti. “Faced with fundamental shifts in the behavior of deposits, institutions benefit from modern tools to manage and grow their funding. ModernFi has been privileged to help institutions of all sizes protect their deposit base, and the team looks forward to continuing its support of the sector.”

Bertolotti and his co-founder Adam DeVita founded ModernFi in 2022.

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MX Unveils Customer Analytics to Help Firms Leverage the Power of Financial Data

MX Unveils Customer Analytics to Help Firms Leverage the Power of Financial Data
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, MX
  • Open finance company MX introduced Customer Analytics for financial services providers this week.
  • Customer Analytics leverages enhanced transaction data and actionable consumer insights to help financial services companies increase deposits and customer engagement.
  • Lehi, Utah-based MX is a multiple-time Finovate Best of Show winner.

Open finance innovator MX introduced Customer Analytics for financial services providers this week. The new offering uses enhanced transaction data and actionable consumer insights to enable financial services providers to grow deposits and boost engagement. Customer Analytics helps these firms spot opportunities for cross-selling and secure greater ROI on their marketing efforts. The technology also helps financial services companies better anticipate and mitigate customer churn.

“Financial services providers have a tough assignment when it comes to piecing together disparate data to truly understand their customers and meet their needs,” MX Chief Product Officer Nandita Gupta said. “MX’s Customer Analytics takes out the guesswork by providing actionable financial data intelligence in a single source.”

Customer Analytics provides a set of intelligent models, dashboards, and tools to analyze both consumer-permissioned and enhanced transaction data. These tools can be readily embedded into marketing platforms and CRMs to help organizations get a more holistic view of their customers’ finances. This helps financial services providers improve customer segmentation and conduct more effective marketing initiatives.

Since its Finovate debut in 2012 (as Money Desktop), MX has won Finovate’s Best of Show award eight times. The Lehi, Utah-based fintech helps financial services providers and other organizations connect and verify account and transaction data. This enables them to uncover insights that can lead to new revenue streams, as well as better, more personalized money experiences for consumers. Founded in 2010, MX most recently demoed its technology on the Finovate stage at FinovateFall in 2021. Jim Magats is CEO. Ryan Caldwell is Founder and Executive Chair.

Photo by Uva Rova

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Onfido Unveils Compliance Suite to Enhance Customer Onboarding for Growing Businesses

Onfido Unveils Compliance Suite to Enhance Customer Onboarding for Growing Businesses
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Alumni profile, Daily news, Onfido
  • Automated identity verification specialist Onfido announced the launch of its Compliance Suite.
  • The Compliance Suite features qualified electronic signatures, one-time passwords, and no-code compliance workflows.
  • Onfido made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2018.

Automated identity verification specialist Onfido unveiled its Compliance Suite this week. The new offering helps companies meet the regulatory requirements for customer onboarding as they expand into new markets.

Compliance Suite brings qualified electronic signature (QES) and One-time Password (OTP) functionality, as well as no-code compliance workflows, to Onfido’s Real Identity Platform. QES offers a digital signature solution that relies on signals unique to the signer. The technology is also backed by a qualified digital certificate that provides a reliable way to confirm the identity of the individual associated with the signature.

Along with the company’s AI for fraud prevention and global document coverage, the result is a fully customizable identity verification solution that enables businesses to manage both local and global compliance needs under a single provider and control center. Compliance Suite has successfully passed its conformity assessment board checks and will be deployed by Onfido customers across Europe.

“Onfido’s Compliance Suite eases the regional compliance headache and delivers a one-stop-shop compliance offering that allows leaders to focus on their expansion, register customers faster, and remain agile to future regulatory demands,” Onfido Chief Product Officer Yuelin Li said. “With Compliance Suite, we now have the most comprehensive verification offering in the market, making Onfido the go-to scaling partner for globally trusted institutions.”

Onfido made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope 2018 and returned to the Finovate stage later that year for FinovateFall. The announcement of Compliance Suite follows news last month that Onfido had teamed up with digital investment platform InbestMe. The partnership made InbestMe the first roboadvisor in Spain to integrate identity verification technology as part of its onboarding process.

Headquartered in London, Onfido has raised more than $182 million in funding, according to Crunchbase. Crane Venture Partners and TPG Growth are among the firm’s most recent investors. Mike Tuchen is CEO.

Interested in demoing at FinovateEurope in London next month? Applications are still being accepted from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateEurope hub today to learn more.

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash

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Bite-Sized Budgeting: Can it Help a New Generation of Savers?

Bite-Sized Budgeting: Can it Help a New Generation of Savers?
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Thought Leadership

I had an interesting conversation last week with two of fintech’s brightest minds, Theo Lau and Barb Maclean. The discussion, which was around personal financial management (PFM) and budgeting, shed light on the financial habits of Generations Z and Alpha.

The issue

As a bit of context, these generations are faced with high student loan debt and a high cost of monthly rent. In my town, the cost to rent a studio apartment is more than double the cost of the mortgage on my five bedroom, two bath home. This is only part of the problem, however.

The other half of the issue for these young adults is the lack of, or even poor, financial education. Not only is this generation growing up without Mint.com, but the best tools fintech has to offer them are buy now, pay later (which can be a useful tool but is just bad advice in general) and early paycheck advances. Perhaps the worst part of the equation is that many of these young people are heavily swayed by impulse purchases promoted by influencers on Instagram and TikTok.

Bite-sized budgeting

While it may be difficult to get folks to regularly engage in actively managing their budget, fintech may have an answer to this problem. The good part is that it already exists.

Bite-sized budgeting is a concept built to suit users with short attention spans. The PFM tools that fit into the bite-sized budgeting category have three attributes– they don’t require much input from the user, they are straightforward and easy to understand, and they only require a small amount of follow-up.

Here are a few examples of bite-sized budgeting tools already on the market:

  • Subscription management tools that highlight users’ recurring expenses to check for fraud, flag forgotten subscription expenses, and ensure the user is still benefitting from the subscription.
  • Discretionary spending tools that analyze users’ transactions, identify non-essential expenditures, and offer insights into where their money is going.
  • Automated savings widgets that allow users to schedule automatic money transfers into savings accounts on a regular basis.

According to a 2015 Microsoft study, the average attention span of Gen Z individuals is about eight seconds. That is four seconds less than Millennials’ attention span. By breaking the chore of budgeting down into manageable tasks, younger users are more likely to look at their budget.

What’s next for bite-sized budgeting?

The missing piece in this de novo budgeting method is offering an aggregated approach. Many of these tools, such as subscription management and automated budgeting exist either as standalone apps or as an added feature of an existing fintech. However, each of these needs to be brought under a single hub that is either standalone or offered by an existing fintech or bank.

As with the pie chart PFM budgeting technology of 2012, bite-sized budgeting will face the issue of miscategorized transactions. When users’ transaction data is incorrect, the tools may flag the purchase incorrectly or offer poor follow-up advice. Both of these issues will make users less willing to rely on them to help manage their finances.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

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Digital Conversations Platform Eltropy Enhances In-Branch Experience with Lobby Management

Digital Conversations Platform Eltropy Enhances In-Branch Experience with Lobby Management
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Eltropy
  • Digital conversations platform Eltropy has unveiled its Lobby Management solution.
  • The offering will help community financial institutions (CFIs) create better branch lobby experiences for customers and members.
  • Eltropy made its Finovate debut in 2017. The company most recently demoed at FinovateFall in 2022.

Digital conversations platform Eltropy launched its Lobby Management solution last week. The new capability will enable community financial institutions (CFIs) to offer a better branch lobby experience for their customers.

“The branch remains an essential member and customer touchpoint in community banks and credit unions, yet inefficient queues and resource allocation often undermine the experience for both visitors and employees,” Eltropy co-founder and CEO Ashish Garg said. “With Lobby Management, we can make every visit effortless while unlocking many operational efficiencies and equipping staff to serve members better.”

Lobby Management is a part of Eltropy’s Branch Management solution portfolio within its Unified Digital Conversations Platform. The new offering gives branch managers the ability to manage walk-in customer flow, and to enhance convenience with tools such as virtual queuing. Integrated with Eltropy’s Appointment Management, Lobby Management also enables members and customers to use a check-in kiosk to check-in for scheduled appointments or to book new ones. Lobby Management also provides lobby traffic analytics to help branch managers best allocate staff and service offerings.

“Lobby Management, powered by the Eltropy Unified Platform, allows CFIs to tie their branch operations with digital operations, thereby holistically serving their members and customers in physical and digital channels seamlessly and simultaneously,” Eltropy VP of Products Jack Chawla said. “With our unique approach to resource management in physical and digital channels, we can help CFIs efficiently service the members in the channel of their choice, including the branch lobby.”

Eltropy made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring in 2017. In its most recent appearance on the Finovate stage two years ago, the company demoed its Eltropy One solution. Eltropy One is the company’s all-in-one omni-channel solution that enables FIs to manage both in- and outbound communications from a universal console. With Eltropy One, FIs can leverage text, secure chat, video, audio, cobrowsing, and conversational bots to handle both simple and complex customer communication.

Founded in 2014, Eltropy is headquartered in Milpitas, California. The company began the year surpassing the 600th customer milestone. In a statement, Eltropy noted that it was the fastest CFI-focused fintech to achieve this accomplishment. The new milestone announcement came with news that the company was increasing its investment in Generative AI and product R&D by 36% this year.

Photo by micheile henderson on Unsplash

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Crédit Agricole Acquires 7% Stake in Worldline

Crédit Agricole Acquires 7% Stake in Worldline
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Credit Agricole, Daily news, Mergers & Acquisitions, Worldline
  • Credit Agricole is taking a 7% minority stake in Worldline.
  • The announcement comes six months after the two initiated their partnership in July of 2023.
  • Credit Agricole is making the move to “reaffirm confidence” in Worldline, which was hit with scrutiny over its AML practices last year.

French bank Credit Agricole announced this morning it has taken a 7% minority interest in payments services company Worldline.

Today’s agreement comes six months after the two first partnered in July of last year. According to Credit Agricole, today’s move to deepen this relationship will help strengthen the partnership to create “a major player” in the French merchant payment services market.

“Through this transaction,” the bank said in its press release, “Crédit Agricole Group is reaffirming confidence in its partner: a strong franchise, leading-edge technologies, and proven innovation capabilities, at the service of its customers.”

Credit Agricole’s other aim in taking a minority interest is to demonstrate its intention to not only support Worldline’s development, but also to implement its strategy as a player in the European payments sector. In the long-term, Credit Agricole seeks to remain a minority shareholder in Worldline.

France-based Worldline, which faced scrutiny over its AML practices last year, saw its shares cut in half after the allegations arose regarding its AML safeguards. After today’s announcement, Worldline’s shares jumped 5%.

Worldline began facilitating card transactions in 1973 and currently has 18,000 employees in more than 50 countries and counts annual revenue of around $4.4 billion. Gilles Grapinet is CEO.

Interested in demoing at FinovateEurope in London next month? Applications are still being accepted from innovative companies with new solutions that are ready to show. Visit our FinovateEurope hub today to learn more.

Photo by Anna Shvets

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