| | DECEMBER 202019Diversifying offerings to meet customer needsThe lockdown has unlocked a plethora of opportunities on the digital front to deliver holistic financial services to cater to consumers' behaviour and meet their financial needs. A simple example for this could be the facilitation of loans to medium and small enterprise owners through digital lending platforms. This has not only catered to their financial needs but also empowered low income communities & small businesses.Verticals like investment, wealth management, insurance etc. will also witness immense growth. This will in turn encourage stronger financial planning among customers and help them achieve financial independence.Catering to a growing mobile-first user baseSocial distancing is increasing the use of online channels - especially mobile ­ among consumers to monitor and manage their finances. Digitally savvy consumers are now expanding their horizons and are opening doors to less established brands and trusting them for a better experience. Partnerships between banks and fintechs has been a popular topic of discussion for a while now. However, one cannot stress on the importance of these partnerships any harder. Fintechs can build their credibility among customers by collaborating with banks to help digitize their offerings. Banks can leverage fintech capabilities to offer mobile-first experiences to their consumers making it a win-win situation for both parties.Tackling adversities with robust infrastructureUnlike incumbents, fintechs are more technologically equipped to tackle any kind of disruption and have responded to changes relatively faster. During demonetization, fintech were able to take charge in solving customers' cash crunch crises by making digital payments a seamless experience. Similarly, fintechs have also been able to cope with changing norms of RBI and deliver digital-first services. The pandemic has evidently demonstrated, change is unpredictable. To ensure sustainability, fintechs must build on agile API-based modular infrastructure that can help them adapt to change in no time. This will allow them to readily test, integrate and modify their products before rolling them out to customers, in real time. Not to forget, API platforms also take care of regulatory compliance, which helps fintechs to easily adapt the changing regulations, policies and trends.Agility, adaptability and a digital-first mindset is at the core of every fintech organization. When you marry these capabilities with the right infrastructure, it can also empower fintechs to function effectively and play a positive role in future.It is time the fintech sector gives more importance to innovation and adjusts and improvises its offerings to adapt, sustain and grow in diverse conditions. Building on a unified tech platform can help fintechs design and launch mobile-first products that can be modified in real-time. These unified tech platforms come with pre-built integrations that quickly adapt to the changing regulatory guidelines and data security standards.With the approach of investing in new technologies to meet financial challenges, players in fintech will have the ability to disrupt the legacy in the financial sector and form a concrete base for the economy to progress in a phigital world. Ramki Gaddipati
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