COVID-19 accelerates the rise of digital finance

 The rise of digital finance and demand for fintech is the real financial transformational story of the COVID-19 era, notthe rally in Bitcoin prices…

…but the recent announcements of greater acceptance and adoption by Tesla, BNY Mellon and Mastercard confirm theincreased investor demand and interest in transacting payments in cryptocurrencies.

Competition between banks and fintech is intensifying, with Big Tech possessing the most potent digital platforms due totheir access to customer data.

Co-opetition’ between ‘Fin’ and ‘Tech’ players lies ahead, with banks stepping up investment to narrow the technology gap,and the battle between US banks and non-bank fintech is also playing out on the regulatory front.

 Asia continues to drive third-party (noncash) global growth in payments.

Traditional banks could emerge as endgame winners in the digital age of banking due to their advantage from depositfranchise, risk management and regulation.