Wild West or world of opportunity for fintechs? Charles Kerrigan, Partner at CMS London, and Matt Williamson, SVP at Endava jump into the hot seat. Listen in for insights on what the most recent AI revolutions might mean for fintechs, the types of regulations being put forward, the impacts of horizontal versus vertical regulation, why GenAI is an expert tool for experts, and what early-adopting organisations might be doing wrong when it comes to their data.

Key Takeaways.

[0:00] Denise Johansson puts Charles Kerrigan, Partner at CMS London, and Matt Williamson, SVP at Endava, in the hot seat.

[2:22] The pace of change does make it seem like the Wild West, but it really is only as wild as your risk appetite.

[3:56] The first AI wave rippled through financial services years ago, but this recent surge hits differently. Charles explains the two types of regulations — horizontal (EU) vs. vertical (UK) — currently on the horizon.

[7:31] Efficiencies! The biggest wins might not be sexy right now, but they are pushing the wave.

[10:59] Navigating hallucinations is an issue when it remains an expert tool in the hands of experts. Charles explains why he should not use GenAI to build a nuclear power station.

[14:30] Regulators will always pick transparency, especially when the new shiny thing seems too good to be true.

[15:13] Is it the Wild West, or is it FOMO?

[17:36] Let’s talk about data hygiene because we’re all doing it rather poorly.

[19:07] Matt’s predictions for 2025: mind your fraud detection.

[20:04] Charles’ predictions for 2025: watch for oncoming regulation, and he sees an opportunity for fintech to take on a leadership role!

[22:38] Charles shares his advice for companies looking to begin adapting to AI.

[24:16] Matt asks “But will it make the boat go faster”?

[25:28] Denise signs out until the next time she puts an industry leader in the hot seat.

People.

• Guest Charles Kerrigan, Partner in the Finance Team and part of the specialist Crypto and Digital Assets Team at CMS London, a Future Facing organisation taking a bold, dynamic, and agile approach to help clients of every size confidently face the future.
• Guest Matt Williamson, SVP & Industry Principal at Endava, combining world-class engineering with deep industry expertise and a people-centric mindset to drive meaningful change.
• Host Denise Johansson, co-CEO and co-Founder of Enfuce, a female-founded fintech helping drive business growth, solve customer challenges, and extend financial inclusion.

Links.

• CMS London
• Endava
• Enfuce

Guest Quotes (edited).

• There's an expectation that firms will be using AI because their customers are using it. So the regulation can take two forms, vertical or horizontal. — Charles Kerrigan, CMS London, InTheHotSeat
• We've seen some lawyers embarrassed by hallucinations in the press and whenever there's a new technology like this, you always have to hope that you're not the person who learns the lesson publicly. — Charles Kerrigan, CMS London, InTheHotSeat
• I can use GenAI to support my legal work because I ought to know the answers. I shouldn't be using GenAI to build a nuclear power station because I don't know how to do that. — Charles Kerrigan, CMS London, InTheHotSeat
• I've been doing internal research with our AI teams and the term Wild West came up quite a lot as a definition, but it really comes down to if you are risk-averse, or excited about the possibilities. — Matt Williamson, Endava, InTheHotSeat
• There's a balance between optimisation and transparency, and financial regulators will always lean towards transparency, particularly in anything facing customers. — Matt Williamson, Endava, InTheHotSeat
• We're finding that lots of people are engaging in AI for fear of missing out. — Matt Williamson, Endava, InTheHotSeat
• When it comes to data hygiene, are we doing the basics right? We're guilty of this in all industries: We get caught up in the shiny new thing and fail at setting up a correct foundation. — Matt Williamson, Endava, InTheHotSeat

Denise Quotes (edited).

• AI isn't just a buzzword anymore. It's real, just like global warming. It's real and it's happening but is it the Wild West? — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• So if we look at actual regulation the West isn’t as Wild. But are they hindering innovation? — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• Fintechs will be more comfortable with navigating and adopting regulations, and seeing the opportunities. We’ve enough experience with compliance! — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat
• AML, KYC, and KYB probably have the most to win in adopting AI as much as possible. — Denise Johansson, InTheHotSeat