BetaKit Live: Emerging tech’s impact on financial innovation
Summary
TLDRIn this insightful discussion, Douglas Saltus, Chief of Bikit, interviews Daryl Mullen from MasterCard to explore the impact of emerging technologies on financial services. They delve into how innovations at the intersection of commerce are revolutionizing payments, banking, and financial management. Mullen highlights MasterCard's evolution from a traditional credit card company to a tech giant, emphasizing its role in data analytics, cybersecurity, and real-time connectivity. The conversation also touches on AI's potential to enhance customer experiences and underlying infrastructure, the importance of trust and security in new technologies, and the transformative effects of open banking and quantum computing on the financial landscape.
Takeaways
- 🚀 MasterCard is evolving from a traditional credit card company into a tech company that is over 50 years old, focusing on the digitization of payments and financial services.
- 🛠️ The company views itself as a network that plays a crucial role in the financial ecosystem, providing a level playing field for businesses of all sizes and enabling value for all stakeholders.
- 🤖 Artificial Intelligence (AI) is seen as a transformative capability rather than a product itself, similar to electricity, which will power various applications and use cases in the financial industry.
- 🔒 Trust and security are central to MasterCard's approach to new technologies, ensuring that as they adopt and integrate AI and other emerging tech, they maintain a high level of reliability and safety.
- 📈 MasterCard is focused on three primary areas: data analytics, cybersecurity, and real-time connectivity and authentication, which are seen as waves of technological advancement.
- 💡 AI is being used internally at MasterCard to improve efficiency, such as reducing extensive documentation into more digestible formats for customer support and product teams.
- 🌐 Open banking is presented as an infrastructure that allows for more connected finance, potentially revolutionizing cash flow management, supply chain, and expense management for businesses.
- 👁️ Biometric authentication is becoming more mainstream, with MasterCard working on democratizing access to these technologies, making them easy to implement for businesses of all sizes.
- 🔑 Privacy is a significant concern as more personal data is collected and stored by various entities. MasterCard emphasizes the importance of security and proper data handling to maintain consumer trust.
- 💡 Quantum computing is identified as an emerging area of focus for MasterCard, with investments being made to protect against future threats posed by this technology, including the potential for breaking current encryption methods.
Q & A
What is the significance of the emerging technologies discussed in the transcript for the financial industry?
-The emerging technologies discussed, such as AI, open banking, and quantum computing, are significant as they have the potential to radically alter various aspects of the financial industry, including payments, banking, and financial services management, delivery, and security.
How does MasterCard view its role in the broader financial services ecosystem?
-MasterCard views itself as a critical player in the financial services ecosystem, providing a wide range of capabilities from traditional credit card services to new technologies like crypto and open banking. It aims to enable value for all types of businesses and protect all parties involved in transactions.
What is the analogy used by Daryl Mullen to describe MasterCard's position in the market?
-Daryl Mullen uses the analogy of a family to describe MasterCard's position. He likens the traditional card networks to the parents and the new capabilities like crypto and open banking to the children, with MasterCard guiding and nurturing their growth while maintaining its established presence.
How does MasterCard approach the integration of new technologies like AI into its operations?
-MasterCard integrates new technologies like AI by first focusing on internal efficiency and understanding the technology deeply before bringing it to market. It emphasizes the importance of data quality and the application of AI to improve existing systems and processes within the company.
What are the three primary areas that MasterCard focuses on in terms of technology?
-The three primary areas that MasterCard focuses on are data analytics, cybersecurity, and real-time connectivity and authentication. These areas are seen as critical infrastructure for the new technologies that MasterCard is exploring and implementing.
How does MasterCard ensure that new technologies are trustworthy and secure before they are widely adopted?
-MasterCard ensures trust and security by not being the first to bring new technologies to market. Instead, it focuses on understanding and applying the technology internally, creating standards, and emphasizing governance to build wide-scale trust over time.
What is the role of AI in enhancing customer experience and infrastructure within MasterCard's operations?
-AI plays a significant role in enhancing customer experience by personalizing interactions and making processes more efficient. In terms of infrastructure, AI is used to improve internal systems, such as by streamlining access to extensive documentation and support materials for various products.
What is the importance of biometric authentication in the context of MasterCard's services?
-Biometric authentication is important as it provides an additional layer of security and convenience for users. It helps in creating a seamless and secure payment experience, reducing the friction in transactions, and combating fraud more effectively.
How does MasterCard address the issue of trust and privacy in the context of open banking and connected finance?
-MasterCard addresses trust and privacy by advocating for clear standards, transparency, and governance in open banking practices. It emphasizes the need for frameworks that protect user data and ensure that information is only accessed with explicit user consent for specific purposes.
What are some of the potential benefits of open banking and connected finance for small businesses and individuals?
-Open banking and connected finance can provide small businesses and individuals with streamlined processes for cash flow management, supply chain improvements, and expense management. They can also enable easier access to services like virtual cards for secure and direct transactions with suppliers.
How does MasterCard view the impact of quantum computing on its operations and the broader financial industry?
-MasterCard views quantum computing as a significant technological advancement that will impact cybersecurity. The company is investing in quantum computing to bulletproof existing networks and transaction management, as well as to create new opportunities for the future.
Outlines
🚀 Introduction to Transformative Tech and MasterCard's Role
The video begins with Douglas Saltus, Chief of Bikit, introducing the topic of emerging technologies that are set to revolutionize various industries. He emphasizes the importance of staying updated with these changes, especially in commerce, and highlights the intersection of technology with financial services. To delve deeper into the subject, he invites Daryl Mullen from MasterCard to discuss the impact of new tech on financial services. Daryl provides an overview of MasterCard's evolution from a traditional credit card company to a tech company that has been around for 50 years. He talks about the company's broad product portfolio and its role in the financial services ecosystem, touching on traditional networks, credit, debit, prepaid cards, and the digitization of payments.
🛠️ MasterCard's Three Waves of Technological Advancement
Daryl Mullen outlines MasterCard's focus on three primary technological advancements: data analytics, cybersecurity, and real-time connectivity and authentication. He discusses how these areas are crucial for the successful implementation of new technologies and how they contribute to making life simpler for consumers. The conversation also touches on the stages of acceptance for new technologies, drawing parallels between AI and previous technological shifts like the internet, mobile, and cloud computing. Daryl likens AI to electricity, highlighting its potential to power various applications and capabilities.
🔒 Trust, Governance, and Security in Technology Adoption
The discussion shifts to the importance of trust in technology adoption, with Daryl explaining that trust does not move at the same pace as technological advancements. He stresses the role of governance, security, and compliance in building widespread trust. Daryl also shares insights into MasterCard's approach to new technologies, emphasizing that they do not rush to market with the latest tech but instead focus on understanding and integrating it into their systems to ensure efficiency and trustworthiness. The conversation also covers the role of data in AI and how MasterCard leverages its vast amounts of data to improve internal processes and customer experiences.
👥 Navigating the Adoption Curve and the Impact of AI
Daryl Mullen and Douglas Saltus explore the adoption curve of new technologies, discussing how people often overestimate short-term changes while underestimating long-term impacts. They touch on the role of AI in cybersecurity and the importance of protecting against fraud and other malicious activities. Daryl shares anecdotes about how MasterCard is testing and implementing AI internally to improve efficiency and customer support, emphasizing the gradual and cautious approach MasterCard takes towards integrating new technologies.
🏦 Modernizing Loyalty and the Role of AI in Customer Relationships
The conversation moves to the topic of loyalty and how AI can modernize the relationship between merchants and customers. Daryl discusses the transition from transactional to relationship-based loyalty and the importance of data in creating personalized customer experiences. He also addresses the challenges faced by new immigrants and businesses in establishing credit and banking relationships in a new country, suggesting that open banking and connected finance could provide solutions to these issues.
📲 The Intersection of Technology and Fraud Prevention
Daryl and Douglas discuss the dark side of technological advancements, particularly the rise of fraud and scams. They talk about the measures MasterCard takes to protect customers, such as monitoring unusual account activities and implementing biometric authentication. The conversation also covers the importance of privacy and the ethical considerations surrounding the use of personal data in combating fraud.
🌐 Open Banking and the Future of Financial Services
The speakers delve into the concept of open banking, discussing its potential to transform financial services by enabling secure data sharing between banks and other service providers. Daryl explains that open banking is not a product but an infrastructure that can facilitate a range of applications, making financial services more accessible and convenient for consumers and businesses alike.
🔗 The Potential of Open Banking for Small Businesses and Newcomers
Daryl highlights the benefits of open banking for small businesses and newcomers, such as streamlining cash flow management, supply chain optimization, and expense management. He provides examples of how open banking can enable virtual cards for specific suppliers, thus enhancing security and efficiency. The conversation underscores the importance of trust, transparency, and the right regulatory frameworks for the successful adoption of open banking.
🌟 MasterCard's Emerging Tech Trends and the Impact of Quantum Computing
In the final part of the conversation, Daryl mentions MasterCard's emerging tech trends report, which explores various technologies, including AI, quantum computing, and their implications for industries like travel and health. He discusses the potential of quantum computing to disrupt cybersecurity and the steps MasterCard is taking to prepare for this advancement, hinting at the possibility of a future where quantum-resistant technologies play a central role in financial services.
📚 Resources for Staying Informed on Tech Trends and Innovations
The video concludes with a reference to MasterCard's resources for those interested in learning more about technology trends and their impact on business and society. Daryl suggests visiting the MasterCard Canada website for reports on future tech trends and AI, which provide thought leadership and provoke further discussion on the implications of emerging technologies.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Commerce
💡MasterCard
💡Financial Services
💡Emerging Technologies
💡AI (Artificial Intelligence)
💡Open Banking
💡Cybersecurity
💡Tokenization
💡Loyalty Programs
💡Biometrics
💡Quantum Computing
Highlights
Introduction to the discussion on emerging technologies and their impact on financial services with Daryl Mullen from MasterCard.
MasterCard's evolution from a traditional credit card company to a tech company with a wide range of payment solutions.
The importance of data, cybersecurity, and real-time connectivity and authentication as key areas of focus for MasterCard.
AI's role in transforming customer experience and underlying infrastructure in financial services.
The comparison of AI to electricity, highlighting its potential as a foundational technology for various applications.
The necessity of trust, security, and compliance in the adoption of new technologies in financial services.
MasterCard's approach to evaluating and integrating new technologies with a focus on trust and capability standardization.
The potential of AI in enhancing internal efficiency within companies, such as streamlining documentation and customer support.
The adoption curve of technology and the tendency of people to overestimate short-term changes and underestimate long-term impacts.
The role of MasterCard in providing critical infrastructure for the economy and the importance of scaling technology.
Discussion on the dark side of technology, such as deep fakes, and the ongoing arms race in cybersecurity.
The impact of AI on customer relationship management and loyalty programs in the financial sector.
The challenges and opportunities of open banking and its potential to enable new financial services and products.
The significance of real-time payments and the modernization of payment infrastructure for businesses and consumers.
MasterCard's investment in quantum computing and its implications for cybersecurity and future transaction management.
Final thoughts on the importance of standards and governance in the development and adoption of new financial technologies.
Transcripts
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hello and welcome to another bit live I
am Douglas saltus edin chief of bikit
and uh we stand on the precipice of a
bunch of new tech that promises to
radically alter a variety of Industries
and if businesses want to keep up with
how things are changing they're going to
need to pay attention to this Tech uh
now interestingly enough a lot of this
seems to be intersecting in the world of
Commerce uh impacting how payments
banking financial services are managed
delivered and safeguarded I can't think
of a better company to talk to about
this stuff than MasterCard which is why
I'm very happy to have Daryl MC Mullen
to talk about emerging Tech's impact on
Financial Services Daryl thank you so
much for doing this man great to be here
yeah okay we've got so much to talk
about um and I I think we can we can go
real long on this but I want to keep it
tight and engaging for uh the people
watching this and I think maybe the best
place to start is with MasterCard
because uh I don't know if you want to
describe you wear a lot of hats there's
a lot of consumer backend infrastructure
touch points yeah so could you talk to
me how you feel MasterCard finds itself
in like the broader set of financial
services yeah that's a it's a great way
to start um you know mastercard's been a
Brand around a long time people know and
and think of it you know as a
traditional credit card if you will
MasterCard turned 50 um that's a
50-year-old tech company is like ancient
yes um I'm so I feel aning some days too
but when I think of where you are in
your life at 50 you're kind of that
sandwich generation where you hopefully
if you're lucky you still have your
parents around you may have some kids
it's kind of like the way Master Card is
if I think of like the parents it's like
the traditional card networks the credit
credit Network the debit Network prepaid
cards been around for a long time uh the
eldest child the eldest child if you
will yeah I think of them almost as the
parents they're still alive and kicking
and doing really well you know you can
tons of business cases one of the AR
arguably one of the world's greatest
Moes uh around things like that from a
technology perspective um but that's
kind of like where Our Roots were over
the last 10 to 20 years it's been about
the electronification of payments
digitization of payments
tokenization uh e-commerce crossborder
payments all of that the just
traditional money movement and that and
the role that that plays
overall um and then other days I feel
like I have this like classroom of kids
of of new capabil and whether that be
crypto whether that be open banking
whether that be installments buy now pay
later I can go down the list of probably
25 other different uh things I think in
total our our product portfolio is
something like 687 products uh you can
imagine there's this this whole spectrum
of type of capabilities you have and
when you have kids you know you have
hopes and dreams and you think you know
what they're going to be like yeah but
you don't know yet and they all want to
be firefighters right now totally and
that's kind of how I feel about those
Technologies too right so and we can
talk about that whether it be AI whether
that be open banking um we have hopes
and dreams and we have some ideas and
where they can go um but it's early days
and some of that as well U but I think
we can learn from the lessons that we've
had on the last 20 years on the
electronification of payments and then
of course just more broadly what it
means to be a network and the role of a
network in any ecosystem you play this
this kind of Level Playing Field whether
it's a small business or a large
corporate or a government or a financial
institution or a fintech startup we
intersect with all of them and we try
and enable value for all of them uh and
protect everyone as part of those
transactions okay um so I don't know if
that helps kind of like Su up average
week so and and then would it be fair to
say like within your role specifically
at MasterCard it's like your job to keep
track of the family
like Grandpa down to the new Toler like
how
how yeah I mean everyone has a road map
right every everything is um whether
you're generating Revenue whether you're
making sure you're delivering the right
value um I think probably if you if you
were to bucket uh what are the three
primary things that MasterCard does um
because all that stuff I talked about
were
products if I kind of leveled up there's
probably like three waves one is data
analytics
mhm one is cyber
security uh and one is around realtime
connectivity and
authentication those are a bit buzzword
but I actually I could probably put all
of those things into those three buckets
as to what's the role that MasterCard
plays to have all this new technology
actually work for people yeah okay so
this is this is where we we shift from
like the consumer facing engagement side
that everyday people are familiar with
and you're working with technology and
data partners and whoever and doing your
own work to actually
provide to make the platform a platform
or to connect the things that then
become a platform yeah yeah exactly I
mean you know if you were to tell the
average
consumer um yeah you should be part of
the token authentication framework
they'll be like huh what the hell is
that but but they love the idea of being
I love that band yeah but they love the
idea of being able to just tap their
phone be able to pay for things that's
what they care about and how does that
make their life simpler in some ways so
keeping this in mind then uh I think if
we're going to have a conversation about
anything emerging Tech we should
probably talk about the technology that
is being hyped right now to change all
of society and and every industry
included within that um but I wanted I
want to keep this narrow beam focused
within a uh a Commerce framework so when
we're talking about
AI how do you think it's going to
impact let's let's start customer
experience but then also then underlying
infrastructure that feeds that platform
that Iceberg we were talking about
before but let's let's start with the
customer experience uh of
AI sure um I think even before we go
into that let's actually just talk about
kind of Technology waves a little bit
right because um I already exposed my
age so it's obviously my not my first
rodeo in terms of these things and it's
kind of funny how the cycle goes where
the similar language around when
something new and big comes along and
how it's going to change everyone's
lives you know that was the information
superhighway which was the internet and
then it was mobile and all those changes
that mobile will have to people's lives
and then it was cloud and all the
changes that the cloud would have and
now it's AI um the funny thing is that
there's almost kind of like stages or
degrees of acceptance with any of these
new technologies I find it kind of
interesting that initially they all
think of this these Technologies as
products and they're not actually
products right they're actually they're
capabilities or their infrastructure
which may become critical infrastructure
in some ways but it wasn't like let's
use all example of all of those right
the internet it wasn't the internet
itself that was the interesting product
it was the applications on top the
Googles the e-commerce in general right
page ex I was waiting for you to say but
I'll bring it up right now and mobile it
was you know applications like uh GPS
which led to Uber which uh and things
like social media and it wasn't until
like what third or fourth generation the
iilm that you had the ability to do a
selfie and all all that sort of stuff
that came around Cloud everyone talked
about for a while a while but it wasn't
until you saw things like Netflix and
Spotify and how they transformed
Industries and and how you interact and
intersect in your daily lives AI is kind
of going to be the same way right it's
AI is not a product uh it people early
days they're thinking of it that way and
the initial you know Tire kicking or
building some end user interfaces like a
chat GPT for people to start you know
getting familiar and comfortable with it
in any way I think of AI more is
like
electricity right if you if you actually
what are we uh 2024 there you think 100
years ago 1924 electricity was like the
AI right and it was the same thing it
was like wild west people were probably
getting electrocuted there's probably a
lot of house fires there was a lot of
things a lot of experimentation going on
a lot of Standards had to come out there
was any new technologies there's the
good side and the bad side like
literally standardizing like how
electricity happens right like we we
shouldn't walk past that idea of of not
just like uh forget like uh UK versus
North American Outlets it's like what
voltage are we setting the stuff at yeah
like you know the your uh fuse box in
your house and all that sort of there's
there's standards there's
governance uh and and why those stages
are needed obviously is to build WID
scale trust the reality is trust doesn't
move at the same Pace as technology
right every week There's a hot new thing
on technology but do people trust it at
the same Pace no it takes time takes
time and then all those elements of
governance and security and
compliance uh play rout and I bring that
up because I do feel like that that
actually is core to mastercard's DNA
right it's not about What new
technologies MasterCard is bringing to
the table it's how do we make these
Technologies usable enough at a wide
scale that people can trust them okay so
you can go anywhere in the world and
know when you see the kind of Master
Guard brand behind something you have a
different level of trust and security
that I can interact with that Merchant
or I can do that transaction I I get
that so if I were to care that for it
it's like if for for Mastercard or for
you to deem a technology at worthy of
the product level to introduce I guess
either side on the on the back end or
the consumer divide it's got to pass
some sort of like trust filter and I'm
assuming that's like capability
standardization all of the actual like
heavily regulated Financial Services
stuff that we could talk about like by
country that we'll we'll just put off
for another conversation but You' uh is
this a a very historically grounded way
of you saying I have no idea what these
products are going to be yet because
we're still evaluating the technology as
they become products um no I think
actually I'll take it a step inward a
little bit where any new technology that
comes to the market we never bring it to
Market first we actually figure out
because we you shouldn't assume that you
as any
organization actually it's not part of
your DNA yet you weren't born on this
new
capability um
we've been doing AI for like a decade um
you know and early stages of you know
Diagnostic and predictive capabilities
so if you you could say of the millions
of AI companies that are out there uh
today um what what's the one common
denominator they all have in their level
of quality or
capability is the quality or capability
of the data they have access to okay
right and is that's this is AI is data
electricity kind of thing a little bit
right and um so if there's one thing
that that MasterCard is not shy of is is
data right if you know when you have um
you know just on the card Network side
you probably have three billion cards in
the market doing 15 billion transactions
today which generate probably a trillion
data points daily um whether that be
geolocation relationship between a
merchant the consumer the type of items
you're buying is that your device where
you know there's a zillion different
points of data we figure out how to
apply AI to our own systems
internally because every company is
inefficient at some level or another
right you know I touched on earlier
we've got you know 600 plus products
each one of them has multiple versions
of people are using each one has
multiple implementation guides multiple
user guides multiple technical support
guides so think of the thousands and
thousands of pages of documentation that
MasterCard has what is an AI agent help
do to go from reams of content to an
agent that can help you understand how
to use a product how how what what do I
do with my points no exactly check out
this code it could be everything from QA
to finding the right thing and that's
really a really low-level example but
actually probably a critical one for if
you're a bank right or if you're a a
tech company or you have any sort of a
large user base before you go and try
and put something in front of a consumer
to figure out and understand put
something within your own company within
your own processes to figure out how you
can make things more efficient between
your customer support teams and your
product teams or your delivery teams and
the like so there's lots of efficiency
that AI can use internally within
companies and that goes back to the
point of if it's like electricity it
should be powering everything in your
company how you feel the adoption curve
is going to look like for business and
consumers and we can we can talk about
maybe about like spec on other features
that you're looking at um but I I kind
of feel like you're you're answering a
little bit in terms of mastercard's
process to evaluate to build and to
learn but let's go back to the
electricity thing if for the average
person to come in contact with uh the
internal combustion engine or electric
lights they're probably going first to
the World's Fair or they're reading
about it they it's either being um over
over a long period in a very Contex
heavy way present presented to them and
then it gets disseminated across
Society you and I were talking right
before this about prominent tech people
uh sharing deep fakes of them right now
yeah we're just on a level of like
distribution of new exciting things
that's like far beyond any other time so
maybe I want to ask you first how how
you navigate the adoption curve you're
talking about um
what's that expression you know people
uh overestimate the change they can make
in the short term and underestimate the
change they can make in the long term I
it's kind of you could that's the kind
of rule 101 with technology in a lot of
ways too right and maybe it maybe it
goes back to you know there is um you
know the the internal geek in all of us
that love the new shiny ball and the new
technology and some are early adopters
more than others but we all have a
little bit of that kind of intellectual
Cur osity you either want to plug it in
or take it apart yeah but would you
would you rely on it would it to run
your business or run your life or take
over certain components of your um
personal finances business finances yeah
yeah exactly so you know and it's um you
can have a ton of different examples on
that whether that be crypto or whether
that be anything else if I think of the
role that we play in providing critical
infrastructure for economy to run
um that's where we are it's it's you
know it's one thing Building Technology
it's another to scale it they're two
completely different things and they're
often two different parties yes right so
we're we're not necessarily the company
that creates a lot of the technology but
we figure out how to scale it and how to
create those standards that people can
rely on um when it comes to things like
deep fakes of course yeah AI uh as any
new technology there's a good side and a
dark side I thought it was very clever
of my uh cyber security and fraud team
in one of our quarterly business reviews
last year decided to do a deep fake of
me and have me present how great they
were we're along the path to where I
wanted to get to here and you know I
wanted to even just tackle AI as its
impact on cyber security because it's a
huge component of what you guys do in
terms of again you you are helping it
enable these channels of of Commerce but
then you also have to enforce those
standards protect them against um all
the people that would see opportunity
and getting access to the data the rails
the actual you know transactable
component of this does MasterCard have a
thesis on at the consumer level where
some of these tools might be enabled
like you're testing internally um and
like I I want to hear from you where you
are
seeing t
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fincial you're talking about financial
impact if you think about it
conceptually you know a good part of
your life is responsible with your
financial institution right you have
your mortgage your your Banks and uh all
that your cash and all that stuff and
your Investments and your retirement all
in a bank and you'll walk into a branch
and nobody knows you yes you have to
Advocate it's startling like think about
that for a second well when we talked we
talked about the chatot level right you
never want to be on the end point of a
conversation with a uh a major business
trying to Advocate on behalf of yourself
for either your loyalty or uh an
imminent change in loyalty because of
some sort of experience because you
feel uh Anonymous to them I think if I
if I bucket the the modernization of
loyalty I think goes from uh just
transactional to
relationship um so you know it's same
going and say if you're at that
institution forever and you sign up for
a new product you're treated like a day
one customer today it's mindboggling you
even have to fill out an application yes
for a a new product and then we're not
we're not throwing shade in any specific
industry where you go to your doctor's
office or whatever everyone's treated
I'm just I'm it's all intake I'm just
exposing what the opportunity is on the
modernization of loyalty and the impact
something like AI can have in the
relationship between any Merchant and
its customers okay what what is required
D I'll take a step back to get data on
the cloud required us from going to
actual racks of storage space to uh a
virtualization process that like once
it's there it's it's like oh it's the
same thing it's just in the cloud it's
just up there it's great you can pull
down any time for me got internet
connection different folder on my
computer yeah um what yeah what you were
talking about
is all of that data being in relation to
each other
some sort of thing parsing
it connecting it to human decision
makers to like say you know how do how
do we want to keep and maintain that
loyalty and then a consumer touch point
so in in your like product and platforms
responsibility take us behind the
curtain and like this isn't as simple as
like oh we're digitizing this thing or
we're putting on the cloud what's what's
the work going on right now is it even
just like knowing where all the data is
to connect it and feed it and train it
or what is that what is that like and I
know like we could go I'm willing to go
as nerdy as you want to go but what I'd
prefer is if we stay someplace that's
tangible for people to understand like
the effort required to to take Tech to
product well I think that goes back to
what I get excited at MasterCard and its
role as a network can do not only for
that bank but for that small business on
the corner who doesn't have a loyalty
proof
and how can he
actually a loyalty or relationship
experience and not having to have a big
Tech lift in many ways there's roles
that networks can play that actually
provide that for any Merchant so I think
we're very very cognizant of um how do
you make sure whatever technology is
coming to Market that you're providing a
level of Safety and Security and
soundness that people can trust and
build trust with over time
um and then the second layer to that is
inclusivity how are you making sure that
you are as often as possible leveling
the playing field for whether it's a
small fintech or whether it's a um just
a Canadian company trying to do business
internationally uh or a small business
um how can they take advantage of that
technology just as equally as a larger
company can because if you were building
it for just one of those cohorts you'd
be replicating the old style of well we
either need a a Rewards program for
everybody or we only offer it to the
people that okay so you've got to be
building versatility in from the
beginning and then the network side are
you basically like this is where you're
saying without saying it because you're
very confident in it we know every data
touch point that would be required for
this because we we watch we watch that
process happen every day basically okay
um and on the on the dark side of that
fence because you touch that you looked
over it a little bit earlier um same
thing applies right so it is a continual
arms race right if there's anyone that
adapts technology faster than anyone
else it's people that can take advantage
to to do some sort of a it's weirdos on
the internet yeah it's bad actors yeah
and the cost of scaling is actually a
lot less and the and and um so yeah
there is a lot of things that we do from
a protection standpoint um if you think
of account takeovers Canadians are
actually I saw this the other day we are
the most targeted population on the
planet for SMS
scams right because we're so trusting
yeah so and that everything from you
know uh I won't say some large delivery
company that says you have a package
waiting for you to um someone else who's
lonely and just wants to text you and
it's all of a sudden it's a romance of
some sort uh Romance scams are really
really big um uh so big um there was
actually a financial institution in uh
the
UK that have actually on their customer
support team hired
psychologists oh wow because we're
working with that financial institution
to identify romance scams you think
you've fallen in love with someone and
you were going to send them money to
have a flight to come and see meanwhile
you failed a touring test and okay yeah
so rather than have a customer support
person call them and say uh yeah we
blocked your transaction because we
think it's fraudulent and they and that
customer saying what are you talking
about you don't know who I am you don't
know what I'm talking about screw you
where's my money uh the the bank is
genuinely trying to protect the customer
in that regard do they always get a
right 100% no nothing's up but they're
you know they're going to air are they
that you know the 90th percentile are
they on the right side of the fence so I
thought it was incredible
impressive actually of that institution
to have psychologists to be able to talk
to their customer about the situation
they've got themselves into which is
it's not about the transaction and we're
protecting you know fraud um it's about
kind of again going back to the
relationship there so it um you know the
the role that we play there obviously
um things like credit card fraud we've
you know done a great job with over uh
lifespan of our history but that's
expanded much more into more broadly
account opening account takeovers um
loyalty fraud there's a lot of other
different categories I touched on
romance scams and things like that as
well and there are a lot of data points
and touch points that we are identifying
not to track we don't we have zero
interest in tracking people we're not a
media company we're not trying to
monetize anyone in that regard but um we
do want to make sure that if you've
suddenly uh logged into an account and
you've changed the email address and
you've accessed it from a device you've
never that's never been accessed before
we even know that if you're accessing
from your mobile phone you hold it in
your left hand at 35 degrees on on
average and your typing speeds 35 words
a minute and these are your typical
common language like there's a lot of
things that yes if and if the
information was implemented
instantaneous instantaneously almost as
if through an API maybe it's probably
not the actual customer okay yeah um
well I got some some data here so this
is from the Canadian anti frud Center
noting that Canadians lost 554 million
Canadian due to fraud in 2023 alone
which is up from 531 million in 2022 so
this is like a a thing and I would say
this is before although anyone paying
attention has seen the number of uh
Enterprise level and even like Municipal
level like cities are getting hacked and
and and are in a
ransomware uh State I still don't think
we've seen the real product explosion of
of deep fakes and stuff like this do you
are you telling me that the real beyond
the tech the real Threat Vector is new
capacity for cheap Deployable tools to
attack cuddly Canadians who don't think
that anyone's wishing to do them harm
like is it is it the human element
that's the easiest Vector
well you know hindsight always gives you
kind of interesting or different
perspective than when you were going
through something right if you were to
rebuild the internet from scratch
knowing what we know now and knowing how
it's being used and the type of
applications it's used for compared to
early days early days the you know you
look at the initial white papers of the
internet it was about the um
disintermediation of information the
problem though
was our identity became
content right like I I'm willing to
about the average Canadian has between
120 and 150 accounts online whether that
be with retailers Banks social networks
you know places that you've done
business cities federal taxes whatever
the case is it's roughly around there
1208
150 of all of those accounts you've
probably used two to three email
addresses three to five
passwords o three to five it we make it
really oh no really easy that's bad for
the hackers that made that actually made
my spine tingle a little bit that's not
a that number isn't High Enough so when
you then think of you talked about kind
of the incremental or the acceleration
of hacks and access to data and
information whether it's a large Global
Hotel chain or whether it's a platform
or a local
city I hate to tell you this but your
you know your basic identity your first
name last name address date of birth
it's pretty much public domain at this
point yeah right and so and and it
actively can be monetized which is why
we're going to do a a viral social media
dance
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a merchant a device of some form to
securely protect that credential from
from being uh
replicated um works well for credit
cards right and so that's why you can
store a version of your card on your
phone and in your a web wallet of some
sort whatever your preference is um or
store it on different places and it
works right and you need to have some
sort of authentication with it um
identity should have been treated the
same way right and the notion that we
still use um plastic cards uh to verify
ourselves um with the super secret CVC
on the back right because that's well
yeah yeah but you're talking about uh
credit cards let's just even use
something like uh provincial Health
cards oh I see what you're say right
that you show up at a walk-in clinic or
your doctor's office you're not even
authenticated yes they're taking that
number for billing purposes so they know
who to Bill Bill it against but they
don't actually know if it's you they
didn't know that you could actually buy
that template online in Photoshop
version for 20 bucks or something like
that with and generative AI why not just
be throwing them out like candy right
simplify okay so is this where we get
to uh Biometrics as a tie-in right so if
you're going to have this kind of like
token of
self ma uh matching and verifying that
needs a similar level of like you can't
be standing beside your digital ID all
the time being like obviously it's me so
uh how how is this being implemented and
impacted and I know like you guys
launched your own biometric
authentication Service uh through Pho
which is the fast identity online uh
basically again back to standards right
standards exactly right so being a make
sure they have something that's
interoperable and like Google Apple One
Password everybody's this is the place
where they decide how ID is being
figured out right and so we're we're um
democratizing things like biometric
services so whether you're a small
business you don't you shouldn't have to
figure out how to build out a whole Tech
stack in order to accept biometric
service capabilities it should be a very
light lift now changing habits and
behaviors obviously at any company
there's a process change um but we're
trying to make that lift significantly
light for anyone to be able to adopt
yeah um and I was say most people
probably uh
with a phone from like the last three to
four years is probably a little bit more
comfortable with Biometrics than they
would be and uh well even touch ID Touch
ID was the big one I think for people
because they're like you know there's a
to your Generations there's a generation
like nobody's putting my fingerprint on
anything and sending it anywhere and
then it becomes the ultimate convenience
and then from the the facial component I
had a real strong reaction to that just
because I didn't want to be um cognizant
of how I like looked or how what I was
projecting to the world every day but I
also know it's been like just it's uh
incredibly smooth and convenient have
have you seen a like do people um uh
that like MasterCard engaged with
understand that that's Biometrics or do
they like oh it's the new it's the new
whatever feature and I do I do the face
swipe or the tapy tap and then I don't
have to think about it yeah so it's
funny you said tapy tap because that's
exactly what my mother said uh because
it perfect example when we talk about
inclusivity I'm deep in my research
right is my my parents are at that age
where you know they're starting to get a
little for forgetful they're seeing all
of the processes around them migrate
online yeah they're getting overwhelmed
with password resets two Factor
authentications like they they were like
printing off their bills and going into
the bank 32-bit or 64-bit encryption all
that sort of stuff and so it actually
got to the point it was like super
overwhelming for them now they have a
keyboard where they just press
it it's actually it's brought them
closer to doing more things online so
the pendulum has swung backwards where
there the level of complexity has now
made people more comfortable okay this
is great because I wanted to talk about
this a little bit because you were um
conveying some really cool James bondy
style um how to catch Bad actors type
stuff right because you can't yeah you'd
have to have to kill the stream um but
in many other contexts either
historically or depending on who you're
asking some of the what you're
describing and the the knowledge that
you have access to to make sure the
right person is engaging with it is also
horrifying if that information is Mal
appropriated so how do you like we've
been talking a lot about trust more in
enablement of like good experiences but
you're also using information to combat
Bad actors and then there's got to be a
trust component in terms of misusing
that so like where does privacy play
into this yeah huge huge um you know
let's talk about an experience probably
everyone in your audience has done okay
and they probably never realized all the
complexity that Happ around it right um
back in the day you used to hail a cab
yes and uh you get in that cab maybe
they accepted credit cards maybe they
didn't maybe they you just paid cash you
didn't know where that maybe the meter
wasn't who knows there was a whole bunch
of stuff and the cab driver didn't know
who was getting in the back of his car
they were worried are they going to get
robbed they may have a whole bunch of
cash on them all so so there was a
significant lack of trust on both the
driver and the passenger if you think of
when you order a an Uber or lft or any
any other sort of car ride service it's
out there the amount of complexity
that's happening when you do that you're
authenticating the user you're making
sure it's their device you're you're
authenticating their financial
instrument making sure that they can
actually pay for any sort of ride y
you're authenticating the driver the
driver may actually have to take a
selfie before he picks up that ride yep
um there and so there is a a significant
level of authentication that's happened
before you even get into that vehicle oh
and then when you're in even to the
level sometimes I'll receive a message
if we're stck in just horrible Toronto
traffic being like hey just checking in
are you okay we've noticed that you have
stopped moving and you're not at your
destination yet which um I think you
know as uh two white guys we can note
here is probably incredibly comforting
to uh certain uh demographics of people
that might feel very very unsafe beings
yeah of course yeah there's there's a
whole bunch of you know safety uh so
there's there's making sure there's not
bad actors how do you enrich the safety
experience uh from a from user
experience standpoint and then from a
checkout experience it goes away there
is no payment or there is a payment but
the payment experience isn't like this
extra thing at the end of a ride and I'm
trying to get out um and that's where
actually biometric actually I think will
start seeing more and
more um in relation to Commerce in
general you're starting to see it
already uh I've been talking about this
for the years the next thing to be
disrupted is the checkout but you're
starting to see even vendors uh at
certain airports uh I know the sports
arena here um uh instead of having to
stand wait in the line to pay for stuff
you can just walk up there's cameras
that are biometrically authenticating
you and if you've agreed to be able to
sign up for that service and pay for it
walk in walk out you've gotten rid of
the checkout this is that type of data
is never really shared it's more
accessed and then access is turned off
right like there's a secure element on
Nei Electronics device that allows it to
know that I am me my Thum print is me
whatever but that's never conveyed which
is good going back to the cloud example
very very different is that is that the
fire break between
enabling all of these benefits to having
that and not being like Oh my God I just
put like my digital thumb print on the
internet yeah last thing you want to do
is create a a honey pot of biometric
data yes okay but you are touching on a
an important point that every company
that you interact or intersect with is
collecting more and more data right and
so uh whether you like it or not whether
because you signed up for their loyalty
program or is because you bought
something online with them so they know
your home address and all that sort of
stuff that are stored in a profile your
information is stored in more and more
places so when it comes to cyber
security
um a lot of small businesses think well
it's not on me I like I I've signed up
and I use this software platform I use
this cloud service and it's on them to
figure that out there actually is a a
pretty significant layer of
responsibility that everyone should have
um it's it's not that they should have
an expensive burden on but there should
be a level of awareness and
consideration you could be an accountant
you can be a lawyer with an entire rack
of um uh divorce files yes name the data
set there's a level of yeah there's
massive amounts of considerations there
so there's a lot of capabilities that
MasterCard has there um things like Risk
Recon and my cyber risk that is a very
very very very very light and easy way
for any company to understand what their
cyber security risk is is my network
secure is my supply chain that I
interact with digitally is there is
there vulnerabilities there right and
they you shouldn't have to figure that
from a tech but these tools and
capabilities MasterCard provides to many
small businesses and platforms and you
get just basically like a scorecard
you're like your supply chain A+ you're
good or C you've got some part parties
who have either been in vulnerability
threats or they've been hacked or if
you're sending data to them there's a
variety of different ways that a there
is a level of awareness and
consideration people need to have but we
need to make sure that they have the
right tools that it's not super
disruptive for their business okay that
makes that makes a lot of sense and and
again we're talking about like the power
of these networks as new tech emerges
and gets productized uh I would would be
super remiss if I didn't have someone
from masterg guard here and we didn't
talk a little bit about open Banking and
payments modernization cuz we're like
What if your mom uses her phone to take
an Uber uh or a lift and this
infrastructure doesn't exist in a vacuum
it's definitely a
um uh an intersection of of public and
private
sector um but also I know that we
everything that we've tried to talk
about so far today is contextualize it
for like the average person's experience
and then showing the iceberg of how that
exists I know for a fact that open
Banking and payments modernization means
absolutely nothing to the average
Canadian particularly since they haven't
had it so how would you contextualize
what these new pipes this new tech will
enable for the people listening to this
who have followed along up until this
point sure because we got through
Biometrics we can get through open
banking yeah right yeah for sure
um so it's another great bucket or
example of
again I don't think open banking is a
product I think it's infrastructure and
it's about the applications you build on
top of it um some of those may be almost
invisible or feel invisible to someone
but it just provides a level of value
and convenience
um uh so MasterCard is heavily involved
uh around the world around open banking
standards um some of the standards that
are out there some of the founders of
those standards actually work at master
card so we we work very closely on that
um if I if I go back to kind of what I
talked about earlier on the kind of
where I see the three pillars of all of
our capabilities data analytics cyber
security and real-time
authentication that's open bank yeah
it's that's the whole that's that's the
end to end really of of what open
banking is in some ways but so wait have
we just been having a conversation about
open banking the whole time because that
would be the level of uh Bic traduction
that's a
matrix okay uh because you uh because
the the process through which that data
would be shared secured like we're
talking even the examples you were
talking about before of a of uh certain
financial institutions being able to
offer you like actually have different
offers based upon your loyalty your
history um traditionally that would have
to come through one specific financial
institution because um you know uh up
until that point your data is Fort Knox
right like they actually they keep it in
the vault literally uh what we're now is
describing a circumstance where uh that
information can be connected passed
along utilized in way for net new
services that could be coming from uh
the same company well well well yes the
same company but also be a company that
offers Insurance brokerages Banking and
the banking part has no idea they have
an insurance relationship with you or a
brokerage relationship you or you know
I'm still thinking about that small
business who might be working on
something really really cool that uh I
would love to sign up for if I don't
have to fill out you know 30 pages of my
personal history to validate the risk
profile of something like that right so
you you see open banking as the
mechanism for a lot of these products
where where does the um you know we talk
about payments modernization it's really
just like realtime rails where is that
is that again just another like what if
we could do all the things that we do
now but faster like how does that pay
off for the businesses and consumers are
using it what does that Next Level sure
enable so um great question uh I would
say the first problem open banking has
is the name open banking okay it
actually has a it needs a rebranding of
of sorts because that in
itself terrifies people it it terrifies
Banks and it terrifies consumers what
what do you mean my banking information
is supposed to be secure and locked down
it's the reason why I have a
relationship with a bank
it's supposed to be in a vault yeah yeah
yeah that you know just like the the
whether it's subliminal or subconscious
or however you want to describe it it
it's banks are fearful on if I enable
open banking what happens to my
relationship am I liable if something
happens is this going to expand account
uh takeovers you know what's what's
happening all that sort of stuff and
consu consumers don't like what does
that mean what is open banking mean
again it's like another technology that
I don't really see the value in open
banking
but but I see the scariness of being
insecure potentially right so if you uh
were able to document a day in the life
of a new immigrant to this
country and what it's like in that first
30 days to try and open a bank
account what's the first thing you do
they typically open a bank account
what's the second thing they do
sometimes it's the first try and get a
phone or a t communication well you
can't get that unless you have credit
card well can't get a credit card unless
bank account I can't get a bank account
because I don't have a credit file in
this country oh okay so so you start
going on about just the real Basics and
the you can have someone who is like a
business professional from
Singapore moved to Canada for business
and it's like they fell from the sky
totally right not able to identify that
person validate their income validate
their payroll they don't have a credit
file um so what's the role the open
banking can play be able to validate
they have a banking relationship at some
Bank in let's say Singapore if that was
the example I used earlier um what's the
history of that bank what's their credit
rating in that uh Market oh by the way
they just sold their property in that
country and they're trying to move uh a
significant amount of money over to to
this Bank um because that's typically
that's the challenge you have now a wire
um so I I prefer the reference of
connected Finance versus open banking I
know it's subtle words are really
important for me though so I actually it
it changes the framing a little bit well
you're a product guy presentation is
part of design I I totally get that
connected Finance where I can if I need
to validate my income and validate my
sources and validate my existing banking
relationship and validate my identity I
should be able to do that from other
trusted and relied sources to a new
relationship that I want to be able to
build with the key there right
is as the individual who's going to
benefit from that in the middle it
should be very trans transparent for
them what information is being asked and
for what purpose that needs to be
explicit because if you don't know what
data is being captured yeah and what
they're going to do with that data are
they storing it are they storing it
somewhere are they going to do it for a
whole bunch of other things are they
gonna you know sell there's so it is
important and it's a perfect example of
where there needs to be both um
government and private
sector um collaboration on building the
right standards to provide the right
level of privacy and security and I
think the challenge a lot of people have
whether they be fexs or open banking
companies or people that are trying to
uh open up uh and leverage open banking
capabilities is the technolog is there
but the trust infrastructure around it
and the liability risk framework hasn't
really really been it it's still in its
early days other countries have built
out better
Frameworks um have built Frameworks yeah
let's use Australia as an example right
they're probably 18 months ahead of
Canada in that regard um have a number
of Australian banks here in Toronto this
week and doing some best practice
sharing um and once the government
defined what a a baseline framework of
acceptance on data rights and data usage
um MasterCard was actually one of the
first companies that were given full
accreditation to be able to provide not
screen scraping and those type of things
but direct API access uh and providing
the right level permissions and the
right level of transparency for user
protection it went from having zero
Banks to all top 20 Banks live with
direct apis over a summer yeah so
standards matter and governance matter
and privacy in that so and they don't
unfortunately move at the same Pace as
what the technology capabilities are so
it's actually a perfect example where
it's in the early stages of a capability
that some people see the value in um
other people still don't know how they
can use it but uh I think when it comes
back to what we talked about earlier
about relationship um loyalty
relationship um Enterprise loyalty I
guess rather than just transactional
loyalty uh for small
businesses I think I think it completely
modernizes cash flow capabilities um
Supply Chain management yes um there's a
lot of uh interesting use cases there
might tie in well to the productivity
conversations happening in this country
if expense management goods and services
move better money moves faster
absolutely yeah virtual cards uh are not
a new thing but actually get unlocked
and Unleashed with things like open
banking so I can start building direct
relationships with my suppliers I may be
I don't know a plumber with three vans
on the road uh and so I'm not I'm too
small to have a corporate card program
and so I have these kind of wonky Supply
chains and I'm dealing with checks and
invoices and I have two people that are
sitting there running spreadsheets
managing all these expenses and stuff
how can I have connected Finance to
those suppliers with virtual cards that
are tethered directly to that person so
even if they were hacked the only place
that card can be used is with that
Merchant I don't want to get too far in
the weeds but I'm start giving you
examples where everything gets leveled
up honestly I'm really I'm really glad
you're you're you're selling this to me
because I'm buying it because honestly
what what we've been the the counter
examples are digital Finance but digital
only in the way of like digitizing the
old process and it's that it's that
connected that really drives a lot of
you know audience if you like what we've
described the future laid out here
you're looking for connected Finance um
okay master just released the emerging
Tech Trends report which speaks to a
bunch of the thing like I've been
cribbing from that in my prep for this
is there anything that we didn't talk
about that you'd want to highlight uh
from that report uh whether it comes to
either the kind of main pillars of how
MasterCard is tracking new tech or you
know anything else you'd want to say
about the company's role in involving
some of these uh Financial Services like
from the tech
product CU you're you're at a really
interesting position where you get to
talk about both right how one becomes
the other yeah and I sometimes people
get frustrated because they're like oh I
want it tomorrow right like the early
techn open bang is a great example
there's a lot of people that are very
angry in this country you don't have it
today and there's another audience they
like I don't know what I need it for
right so there there's a um and that's
where it's a very interesting position
to be in a company like MasterCard where
you drisk technology and you um you
shake it down and you stress test it to
bring uh the bar up in terms of um the
the the drisk of that capability and you
lower the bar on um being able to gain
access to it and so it's whether it's a
small Merchant or an individual they
should be able to gain access to that my
mother should be able to figure out how
to use biometric service without having
to be a techie yes the tap tap yeah the
tapt exactly um so it's a really it's a
it's a fun role as a network to be very
um cognizant of the impact and the value
that we drive for someone but it's about
um absolutely securing and providing
that extra level of trust that this
technology can be relied on um the
emerging tech report goes into
definitely a lot around AI um if we had
more time we can talk about a lot of
interesting use cases and travel and
health a variety of different areas
there that we're working on um I would
say probably the other wave that you'll
start seeing probably more and more um
at a mainstream level is around Quantum
Computing and the impact that will have
um on cyber security yeah yeah when all
of our passwords today can be broken
within milliseconds yes um uh whether it
is about the distribution of deep fakes
uh the accuracy and quality of deep
fakes Quantum Computing plays a
significant role there um probably one
of the single largest Investments
MasterCard has been making over the last
several years is around Quantum
Computing to uh be able to bulletproof
existing networks existing transaction
management uh but create the next wave
of opportunities too are you saying that
someday soon I could have a Quantum
MasterCard
card maybe okay um that is a great place
to end it uh darl I really appreciate
you talking me through some of this
stuff because uh that you you uh you put
your hands in it and I appreciate the um
willingness to be part of that filter
between uh interesting idea to something
that becomes a part of every Canadian's
uh you know uh day um so thank you so
much for this if there was um anyone
watching this uh that wanted to get more
into this conversation some of the tech
where where would you be sending them
yeah so MasterCard Canada websites
you've got our signals report there
there's one on future Tech Trends
there's one on AI specifically you'll
see two or three more coming out over
the next little while so there's all a
lot of thought leadership and thought
provoking on on how do you um and it's
not it doesn't get into the technology
geeky side of it it's more of the what
does this actually mean and what are
some of the questions you might need to
even ask yourself for the viability of
your business and the viability of your
relationships in your business okay all
right well so check that out and then
maybe we'll have darl back to talk about
Quantum I'm looking forward to that
sounds good thank you all right
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