The key to any successful fintech marriage is communication

Much like a marriage, traditional financial institutions hope that any newly-minted fintech relationship will yield shared growth and long-term happiness. That's why banking providers must build trust and develop strong communication channels with their fintech partners, keeping everyone focused on the strategic goals that brought the partnership together in the first place.

Every week there seems to be wave after wave of engagement announcements between a financial institution and one fintech partner or another. Since these types of partnerships are relatively new and unfamiliar territory for most financial institutions, banking execs need to work hard and with deliberate focus to keep the relationship healthy.

As new consumer-centric experiences and digital services transform the banking sector, fintechs provide critical agility and innovation to help both industry incumbents and disruptive newcomers gain a competitive advantage. Without any fintech partnerships, a bank or credit union risks looking old-school and technologically unsophisticated. Conversely, many fintechs depend on banks to help bring their innovations to market.

Given the stakes in fintech partnerships, it can be helpful to think about the relationship like you would a marriage. When a marriage fails, there are major consequences — e.g., child-custody and division of assets. Similarly, a poor fintech relationship can result in all sorts of uncomfortable situations. It will likely hurt both organization’s brands, negatively impact employee morale and — most importantly — damage customer relationships.

 

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