Questions - often stupid.. on the long journey to the Fintech future at large - updated version

Questions on the long journey 

Summarizing milestones - my own experience mostly based on Fintech in Finland and the other Nordics. (Union Bank of Finland>Merita Bank>MeritaNordbanken>Nordea Bank, Mobey Forum, Visa Advisory board,  EU Expert Groups, Real Time Economy Program, Tieto, MyData etc):

1950s -

Strong emphasis on payment standardization and four corner models > competition instead of hub with monopoly. Real time payments between accounts in same bank early feature. Creditor Reference was introduced in the 70s (ISO20022 in 2016).

1978

Online real time ATM (MiniUBF). Later bank-common network.  Domestic Debit cards introduced – leading to lowest cash in circulation/GDP.

1979

Why should enterprises have to transport punch cards and magnetic tapes to the bank?

TeleUBF launched (customer terminal for file transfer).

1982

Can push-button telephones be used for payments? 

Home-banking with onetime passwords introduced.

1984

Why not PC? 

Home- and SME PC-banking introduced (HomeUBF later branded Solo)

Could a credit to an corporate account at the Union Bank of Finland London branch automatically launch a real time SWIFT message to the head office TeleUBF netbank in Finland?

First answers were no - then yes - and the UBF Instant Cash service was launched. The head office could also use the account in London.

1985

All homes do not have PCs and modems. Why not allow employees to use workplace computers for e-banking?

Work-place banking introduced. Key for taking e-banking usage to 500 000 users ( 20% of eligible) online before Internet.

1988

Why cannot all service be in e-banking?

Equity trading added to Home-banking. Later a long range range of services - for private and corporate customers.

1992

- Why can the Solo e-bank not have a back door – where customers step out strongly identified into third party services?

 Doable as KYC was in law already and log-on tool used two factor and one time code (OTC). E-id services introduced. 2017 used 100,9 million times. Estimate for 2019 - 150 million. Public sector services big user.

- Why are payment receipts needed when account statements have the same data?

Account-statement-as-receipt for automated accounting introduced (no receipts needed).

1993

Why not Mobile?

Payments with voice synteziser and SMS balance reporting introduced.

1996 

Why is it not possible to pay real time from account in online-shopping?

E-commerce real time e-payment introduced – based on invoice payment solution. Dominating payment method in Finnish e-commerce.

1998

- Why does loan agreements have to be signed on paper?

E-Signing (with login-OTC) introduced.

- If you can sign a loan with bank codes – why not a telephone contract?

E-signing service introduced.  Naturally legal and binding – also in employee role.

- Is it fair to load customers down with having to key in payment details- especially very long creditor reference number series?  

Consumer one-click-to-pay e-Invoicing introduced. Direct debit-like standing order added later. No need to use much more expensive and complicated SEPA direct debit. Available of course.

1999

- If  you can make domestic payments from your home computer – why not foreign payments?  

Foreign payments introduced (10 times lower fees – and free of charge with SEPA).

- Internet in your pocket? 

E-banking went WAP.

2000

- Why do we have to distribute salary specifications on paper? 

E-salary – just like e-invoicing – introduced (salary statement clickable from credit to e-banking account).

- Should mobile payments not be globally standardized – proximity and remote?

 Mobey Forum established with Nokia, Visa, Ericsson, Motorola, leading global banks. Against walled gardens: Any phone, any bank, any operator model. Mobey still going strong.

2001

Why not insurance in e-Banking? 

 General e-Insurance launched. 

2004

How can we help enterprises to cut costs by automating payment processes?

B2B e-invoicing 4-corner ecosystem introduced.  Cost saving potential in Finland estimated to 3bn€ by Federation of Industries, Municipal Association and State Treasury. Started to feel really important.

2006

Should e-invoicing not be done for the Single Market?  

Real Time Economy (RTE) program launched.  Full SEPA – payments & e-invoicing first target. Direct debit part of e-Invoicing. Not quite there yet..

2008

- Should not entire value chain be addressed?  

RTE – Full Value Chain. (FVC) phase started. Upstream from e-Order to e-Invoice to automated payment.

- What can we do for the Single Market?

Chairing EC Expert Group on e-Invoicing. Very important report and influence on new VAT-directive (digital signatuter cannot be mandatory).

2009

How can e-Invoicing automate accounting? 

RTE – Fully Integrated Accounting (FIA) phase started. Downstream from e-invoice payment. Unified Reporting Code created.  Accounting references and ISO20022 standard for e-Invoicing.

2010

Should XBRL not be the European standard and VAT reported automatically? 

RTE FIA2 started.  More to do. No-brainer to make it mandatory. Task for Nordicsmartgovernment.org

2011

How could major administrative burden for enterprises – salary, social security and tax reporting and payments be lightened?  

RTE . Fully Integrated Payroll (FIP) started.  Tax taking over – heading for real time national income register and real time taxation in 2019. Real pension and social security payments in 2020.

2012

Can SME administrative burden be cut in half? 

RTE SME50 started.  Yes – together with cutting red tape. Still work to do – but SMEs should work for it themselves also.

2013

How can e-invoice notifications be used to approve payment?  

Nordea press-A SMS launched. Huge success.

2014

How could paper receipts from POS be made structured – to automate accounting?  

RTE Taru program started. Cost saving potential in accounting in Finland 900m€/year. Now key area in RTEco.

2015

Should unlisted shares be digitalised and stored in CSDs? Is DLT ripe for trading?

First evaluations started. Later moved to DLT in Jupiter project. 

https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/32998/finnish-consortium-to-apply-blockchcain-tech-to-share-trading-in-non-listed-companies?utm_medium=newsflash&utm_source=2018-11-22&member=86831

2016

- How can XBRL be implemented in PSD2 model data storage? Can SME model also be used for private expense follow-up?

RTE Taltio program started

- How can automated real time XBRL-accounting (enabled by e-Invoicing, e-Receipts, digital unlisted shares, ISO20022 account statements) be used for automated credit processes and risk evaluation?

Evalution started.

- Is MyData the right approach to combine industry needs with digital human rights? The key to the Data-driven economy?  Should also corporate MyData be included?

Yes. First MyData Conference organised in Helsinki.  DLT technology and Sovrin show good promise

2017

- MyData Global Network launched.

- What was one of the most valuable 100 year birthday presents for Finland?

100 million transactions in banking sector’s e-Id service

- Should a Real Time Economy program for Europe be started?

Yes – as soon as possible. The Nordic-Baltica area can act as laboratories. Structured financial MyData critically important element in many contexts.

- Can merchants, data service providers and banks find common ground for e-Receipt?

Yes. E-Invoice standard using card payment e-Receipt prototype ready and tested. Good progress in 2018 for generic e-Receipt in RTEco program. Cost saving potential in accounting etc in Finland 900m€/year - EU 63bn + massive impact on grey economy.

- How can C2C payments be made real time x-banks? 

- SIIRTO-C2C service launched. Fast take-up. Also used for salary payments.

2018

Should a MyData program for Europe be started?

Yes. Preparations under way.

MyData Conference in Helsinki (August 29-31) https://mydata2018.org

We are entrepreneurs, activists, academics, listed corporations, public agencies, and developers. For years, we’ve been using different words for what we do – MyData, Self Data, VRM (Vendor Relationship Management), Internet of Me, PIMS (Personal Information Management Services) etc, while sharing a common goal: to empower individuals with their personal data, thus helping them and their communities develop knowledge, make informed decisions, and interact more consciously and efficiently with each other as well as with organisations.

Together, in recent years, we have formed a network whose participants share experience, develop common projects, meet at the MyData conference, and take part in collective endeavours towards a human-centric approach to personal data.

It is now time to take this work out in the world and prove its potential impact on individuals, society, and the economy. Today, we believe it is time to publicly assert the values that drive us – and call on those who share those values to act upon them. Join us in reversing the paradigm of personal data. Join us in creating the MyData movement.

How should DLT be used to automate administrative processes?

Mercury pilot by Tieto, Nordea Bank, OP-bank, Asiakastieto, Tax and Trade register - proving that all aspects of establishing enterprise can be handled in digital process in real time.

Should MyData be an organization? 

MyData is a global community which was recently (15.10.2018) formalised as an international nonprofit organisation. Before the official establishment of the association, the community already had more than 20 local hubs on six continents. Our mission is to promote the ethical use of personal data in all domains of business, legislation, technology, and society and to defend digital human rights.

Should not real time data from administrative processes also be available for economy forecasting?

Yes! If it does not threathen privacy, business secrets or cause additional costs to enterprises or of any magnitude to tax payers. https://www.finextra.com/blogposting/16304/four-big-screens

Should GDPR not go US and global?

Yes! And making data useful with MyData principles for the life events. Tim Cook already took the US forward and Yuval Harari should certainly start campaigning. GDPR+ to protect SME data and GDPR++ to set limits for what private/business data the state can collect without citizen consent. Digital dictatorship is a risk.