By: Jer-Trihouse. At this year’s NJ Tech Council FinTech Conference, held in September in Jersey City, Ron Suber, president emeritus and senior adviser at Prosper (San Francisco), a FinTech lending startup, spoke about the future of FinTech and the opportunities for startups getting into the area now.

Here are  just a couple of the points he made:

• This is now the “Big Bang” moment in artificial intelligence (AI). “We see State Street and other banks buying AI companies because they want to take all those people in the call center and turn them into bots, using alternative information and intelligence.”
• Startups have an opportunity in FinTech because the customer is evolving. Much as Spotify killed Apple Music and Pandora, startups can get in there and disrupt. People in their ’20s want something different. In response, capital markets are changing, data is changing. “It’s your job to understand all the pressure points.”
• If you are running an innovative FinTech company and raising funds, you will not only have to explain what you will do with the money, but also how you’ll be able to deal with the pressure created by this next generation. Remember, the children of traditional customers don’t even enter banks, except to get a roll of quarters.

If you’re a brick & mortar lender, your future is dim. Same day funding is here. Your borrower’s phone will continue to be their 1st choice as a conduit to getting MONEY into their account or on their card. Your demographic is dying. I’m not saying your store will close tomorrow BUT you must begin to address this reality TODAY and focus on building the skill sets required to succeed as a lender in this new reality.

Need help with this? Selling? Buying? Reach out! DISCREET is my middle name: Jer at Trihouse Consulting