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It’s been a busy couple of weeks in the world of finance! Between New York Fintech Week, Finovate Spring and Fintech Nexus, our team has had the opportunity to attend, participate and learn about the latest in banking and fintech alongside other leaders in finance. Most recently, the Grasshopper team had the pleasure of visiting the Javits Center in New York City for Fintech Nexus USA, which had thousands of banking, fintech and investment executives in attendance.

One of the most intriguing elements of the conference was the session titled, “Why The Real Threat For Banks is Complacency,” where Chris Tremont, Chief Digital Officer participated as a panelist and shared valuable insight about the bank-fintech partnership model and SMB revolution.

“What we’ve seen within the SMB market is banks just haven’t kept up with it. So how do we solve that problem?” said Tremont. “Every bank’s strategy is different, but for over a decade now, we have believed in the bank-fintech partnership model and have seen it work. Both by working with fintechs on the B2B side to improve our own direct offerings, as well as partnering with fintechs on the indirect side (BaaS) to help profitably grow the bank’s balance sheet.”

As companies face a growing list of challenges that increasingly require digital solutions, business owners need better tools to run their operations and credit when the time is right, which means banks have the opportunity to step up and help them accomplish both. “Everyday, more Gen Z and Millennials are becoming business owners, and they’re sitting there wondering why it’s so hard to run a business when it doesn’t have to be,” Tremont explained.

“People want a different way to access money, and they want it easier. To do that, you have to have the right technology,” confirmed Chris Dean, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Treasury Prime. “Smart banks recognize this.”

The program concluded with advice from each panelist on what banks and fintechs need to hear from each other. “If a fintech is going to work with a bank, consider the cultural connection, have respect for the regulatory environment and take compliance seriously,” Tremont offered. “Remember that there are costs to running a bank and agreements need to be a win-win on both sides. If you’re getting an offer that seems really inexpensive, make sure to look twice because you may get what you pay for.”

At Grasshopper Bank we understand that business banking is not a one-size-fits-all approach and needs are always changing, which is why we are committed to continuously launching and enhancing our products and services to provide the best possible user experience. If you’re a small business searching for innovative digital solutions, apply now or contact us to find out how our offerings can fit your needs. If you’re a fintech looking to build on our platform or offer a financial application that can improve our customer’s lives, we encourage you to reach out.

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