A new book from Wharton management professor 
Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Fintech Interviews and Podcasts
How Divestiture Can Create Corporate Value
Knowledge at Wharton | Angie Basiouny | Jan 17, 2023
A new book from Wharton management professor Emilie R. Feldman offers a comprehensive primer on divestitures, which can be a financial game-changer for companies that know how to execute them correctly.
- Feldman, whose research focuses on corporate strategy and governance, spoke to Wharton Business Daily on SiriusXM about her book, “Divestitures: Creating Value Through Strategy, Structure, and Implementation,” which was released in December.
- Opportunity cost: Often the idea of focus is overlooked by executives, and this is really the missed opportunity that could be pursued in the sense that divesting, removing assets and businesses that don’t fit and might be underperforming, could free up resources to pursue better opportunities in a more focused fashion after completion of those transactions.
- “Managerial compensation is strongly correlated with market capitalization, so there’s a financial incentive not to divest because doing so reduces the executive’s bottom line.”
See: Bill Gates Announces $20 Billion Donation and Obligation to Return His Resources to Society
- 4 strategies:
- resolving or exiting underperforming businesses;
- improving focus;
- reconfiguring and reshaping the corporate portfolio to move into more profitable opportunities; and
- addressing regulatory requirements.
- Types of divestitures: Sales are the most common, but spinoffs and other transactions could be utilized in different circumstances. And finally [there’s] implementation, which has to do with the nuts-and-bolts execution of these strategies and how companies actually put them into practice.
- Value: if we look at value creation potential, the data show that, on average, divestitures create two to three times the shareholder value of M&As.
- Culture: Important misconception about divestiture and the stigma that is often associated with these transactions. Divestitures are seen as, “OK, we bought something and it didn’t work out, so now we’re getting rid of it.”
- There’s a whole world of thinking about divesting more proactively. “What could we be doing that we’re not doing because we’re holding on to this business, not because it’s underperforming or failing but just because we could to better things with our money, our time, our attention, our resources, our people?”
See: CB Insights: FTX ‘Bagholders’ — Investments and M&A Portfolio Map
Emilie Feldman, Wharton Management Professor:
What divestitures can catalyze, especially in companies that are managing them well, is opportunities to rethink how resources are allocated within the company.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Canada’s Open Banking Journey: Taking inspiration from Australia’s Consumer Data Right with Kate O’Rourke, Treasury’s First Assistant Secretary for the CDR
NCFA Canada | Mahi Sall | Dec 12, 2022
Thought Leadership Series of Expert interviews and insights related to a made-in-Canada open banking regime
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada (NCFA), true to its mission of providing education, industry stewardship, networking, growth, and funding opportunities for innovative financial technologies and related sectors, is pleased to launch a brand new thought leadership series on Open Banking led by Berlin-based NCFA ambassador and independent expert in Fintech-Bank Partnerships Mahi Sall.
NCFA is proudly contributing this thought leadership series to help shape a system that will bring profound changes in how financial services will be created, distributed, and consumed in Canada over decades to come. Our hope is that Canada’s Open Banking system will improve economic outcomes, improve market efficiencies and competitiveness, and enable consumers to access new and innovative financial services in a way that is secure, efficient, and consumer-centric.
The series is called ‘Canada’s Open Banking Journey’ and aims to aggregate international and domestic perspectives of Open Banking/Finance expert practitioners from around the globe to advance dialogues, key considerations, and explore potential solutions for the development of a made in Canada open banking regime with the following timeline:
- Sep 2018: Canada’s Open Banking journey officially began when the government established a multi-stakeholder Advisory Committee tasked to conduct a review into the merits of Open Banking
- Apr 2021: Advisory committee publishes final recommendations
- Mar 2022: Government appoints Abraham Tachjian – PwC Canada as Canada’s Open Banking lead responsible for convening industry, government and consumers in designing the foundation of the system of Open Banking for a launch in 2023.
- Oct 2023: Phase 1 implementation expected
NCFA Canada's Open Banking Journey Series:
Thought Leadership Perspective
“As our CDR expands, there are untold opportunities for innovation by combining datasets from different sectors”
- Kate O’Rourke, Treasury’s First Assistant Secretary for the Consumer Data Right."
Overview of Australia's Consumer Data Right
Launched in July 2020 in the banking sector to serve as a testbed, Australia's ambitious economy-wide reform known as the Consumer Data Right (CDR) has expanded since early Q4 2022 to the Energy sector. According to plan a new sector will be assessed and designated every year with Telecommunications being the next sector in line.
The expansion from banking to energy speaks volumes not only about the success of open banking in spite of a low take up according to some sources familiar with the matter but perhaps more importantly it shows the confidence and determination that the authorities have developed in their capability to roll out the multi-year reform. The work around all aspects of open banking might not be finished yet but that is not a roadblock to moving forward, which is a lesson worth keeping in mind, as Canadian committees continue to discuss and agree/challenge their own set of implementation and oversight rules for a made in Canada open banking solution.
Last week, The Australian Financial Review reported that the government has introduced a piece of legislation (“action initiation to CDR”) which is expected to bring significant changes to open banking that should give customers the power to switch banking, energy and telecom providers with only a few clicks of a mouse. Quoting an independent statutory review of the CDR the newspaper added that “screen scraping (common practice globally in countries without open banking regulations including in Canada) should be banned in the near future in sectors where the CDR is a viable alternative”.
For our final 2022 open banking thought leadership series article on Canada’s Open Banking Journey, we have reached out to Australia’s CDR Division at the Treasury department to learn more about the vision behind CDR. The team led by Ms Kate O’Rourke works to deliver the Consumer Data Right through strategic policy and rules development, legislation and program management.
We are pleased to share their insightful contributions below, which offers a glimpse into the experience consumers and businesses will enjoy once open banking is fully implemented.
Kate O’Rourke, First Assistant Secretary, Consumer Data Right Division, Australian Treasury
A key foundation of Australia’s growing digital economy, its Consumer Data Right is a game-changing economic reform that will drive competition and innovation across the economy.
Australian consumers can now access the benefits of Open Banking. So far, so good. But in Australia, energy and telecommunications are the next sectors and datasets to be added to its data-sharing program.
The opportunities for innovation in Open Banking are clearly unlimited – faster credit checks, streamlined application processes and even AI-enabled personal finance assistants.
When it expands to the energy sector, Australia’s CDR will help consumers find better deals, encourage new retail products for households and businesses to better manage their energy use and ultimately drive down the cost of energy.
See: Interview with Brenton Charnley, CEO and Founder of Open Finance Advisors, Australia (Ex-TrueLayer ANZ CEO)
Expanding to telecommunications as the third sector, the CDR will help Australian consumers choose products and services that best suit them, while also increasing competition in the sector and driving improved affordability and service offerings. Importantly, when telecommunications data can be combined with a consumer’s banking and energy data, it will provide opportunities for a range of different applications, such as budgeting, cashflow and financial management apps.
Because the CDR is designed to be an economy-wide digital reform, Australia’s Treasury is continuing to identify priority datasets and sectors to ensure the CDR continues to be implemented in a way that maximizes benefits for consumers.
As our CDR expands, there are untold opportunities for innovation by combining datasets from different sectors. When more data is available through the CDR, we’re likely to see rapid growth in time-saving digital solutions for consumers offered by innovative businesses, including our homegrown fintech sector. It will revolutionize the consumer experience across a range of important milestones and decisions in life – like buying your first car, renting an apartment and setting up new energy and internet deals, starting a small business or planning your retirement.
With its whole-of-economy, consumer-led approach, Australia is leading the world in transforming how we all understand and benefit from data.
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Links you may be interested in:
- Ms. Kate O'Rourke
- CDR Rollout
- CDR in Energy sector
- AFR article: Consumers will be able to switch banks with a few mouse clicks
Mahi Sall is an Ambassador of the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada “NCFA”, and an Expert on Fintech-Bank Partnerships. He is based in Berlin, Germany.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Open Banking Interview with Canadian Lead Abraham Tachjian
The Paypers | Vlad Macovei | Dec 13, 2022
Image: Unsplash/David Dvořáček
In March 2022, the government appointed Abraham Tachjian to lead the development of an Open Banking framework in Canada. His mandate is to consult with the industry, regulators, and consumer representatives. The objective of these consultations is to design and implement the key elements of an Open Banking framework.
Could you please share details about your experience related to Open Banking in Canada and the key responsibilities and mission as the Open Banking Lead?
Earlier this year, Minister Boissonnault began implementing the recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Open Banking (the Committee) through the initial step to name me as the Open Banking Lead. To that end, the Secretariat (Department of Finance officials) and I have been focused on delivering on the recommendations by the Committee on Open Banking, firstly by creating working groups to address the key pillars of an Open Banking system. These working groups focus on accreditation, liability, privacy, and security requirements. They meet frequently and include representatives from industry, consumer groups, and government regulators. The composition of these groups is intended to allow our work to progress efficiently, and we have nevertheless achieved comprehensive industry involvement and commitment. We also regularly engage with stakeholders more broadly to benefit from perspectives across the ecosystem. For those interested in following our progress or submitting input, I encourage you to visit the discussion guides and meeting outcomes which are publicly available on our Open Banking implementation page.
See: NCFA Open Banking Future Outlook with Senator Colin Deacon and Mahi Sall
In parallel, with the support of the Open Banking Secretariat at the Department of Finance Canada, work is being done in the areas of system governance and technical standards.
Who is responsible for consumer education? (Government, banks, fintech?)
In Canada, consumer education is a shared responsibility between federal, provincial, and territorial regulators, as well as entities that sell financial products and services. As part of its mandate, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) provides unbiased and fact-based information on different subjects, including Open Banking, to help Canadians make informed financial decisions. In its submission to the Committee, FCAC recommended a national awareness and education campaign to better educate Canadians on Open Banking.
What are the key developments, policies, practices, and procedures in data ownership, consumer data, data sharing, and privacy rights?
In June 2022, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-27, an Act to enact the Consumer Privacy Protection Act, the Personal Information and Data Protection Tribunal Act, and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act and to make consequential and related amendments to other Acts, which is currently making its way through Parliament.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Canada’s Open Banking Journey: Interview with Michelle Beyo, CEO of Finavator & Interim President of Open Finance Network of Canada (OFNC)
NCFA Canada | Mahi Sall | Dec 12, 2022
Thought Leadership Series of Expert interviews and insights related to a made-in-Canada open banking regime
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada (NCFA), true to its mission of providing education, industry stewardship, networking, growth, and funding opportunities for innovative financial technologies and related sectors, is pleased to launch a brand new thought leadership series on Open Banking led by Berlin-based NCFA ambassador and independent expert in Fintech-Bank Partnerships Mahi Sall.
NCFA is proudly contributing this thought leadership series to help shape a system that will bring profound changes in how financial services will be created, distributed, and consumed in Canada over decades to come. Our hope is that Canada’s Open Banking system will improve economic outcomes, improve market efficiencies and competitiveness, and enable consumers to access new and innovative financial services in a way that is secure, efficient, and consumer-centric.
The series is called ‘Canada’s Open Banking Journey’ and aims to aggregate international and domestic perspectives of Open Banking/Finance expert practitioners from around the globe to advance dialogues, key considerations, and explore potential solutions for the development of a made in Canada open banking regime with the following timeline:
- Sep 2018: Canada’s Open Banking journey officially began when the government established a multi-stakeholder Advisory Committee tasked to conduct a review into the merits of Open Banking
- Apr 2021: Advisory committee publishes final recommendations
- Mar 2022: Government appoints Abraham Tachjian – PwC Canada as Canada’s Open Banking lead responsible for convening industry, government and consumers in designing the foundation of the system of Open Banking for a launch in 2023.
- Oct 2023: Phase 1 implementation expected
NCFA Canada's Open Banking Journey Series:
Interview Begins
”The successful implementation of Open Banking will be significant for the eventual implementation of Open Finance, which is the next step beyond Open Banking, enabling access and sharing of consumer data to even more financial products and services — not just banking.”
-- Interview with Michelle Beyo, CEO of Finavator & Interim President of Open Finance Network of Canada (OFNC)
Mahi Sall: Tell us about yourself and OFNC (formerly OBIC)
Michelle Beyo: Michelle Beyo CEO of Finavator, Interim President of Open Finance Network of Canada, and Advisor of NCFA Canada amongst others
Open Finance Network of Canada (OFNC) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to bring together all stakeholders from financial services to advocate for consumer data rights and educate Canadians and SMEs on the benefits of Open Finance. We are a diverse group of Board Members and a neutral partner for the financial services industry Canada, helping to educate on the benefits of Open Banking and Open Finance. As we believe they can be a force for good for Canadian consumers and SMEs.
“The balance of power in the financial industry must shift. Progressive and inclusive innovation requires banking providers to welcome competition by partnering with fintechs and other third-party providers.”
Mahi Sall: What does Open Banking mean to banks and fintechs, and how does it affect the relationship between the two?
Michelle Beyo: A healthy and competitive financial services sector is vital to Canada's economic well-being. Our current banking culture predominantly favours Canada’s largest FIs. In a recent report by the World Bank Group, Canada is ranked only 23rd in the world for ease of doing business. The report considered different aspects of the participating countries' business environment including their regulatory environment. Within this culture, the concentration of asset size held by a handful of large retail banks has increased more than almost any other developed country in the world. This has resulted in: A dominant market share that allows a small group to determine the pace and direction of financial innovation in the country. An uneven playing field that flourishes to the exclusion of smaller credit unions and FIs, challenger banks and fintech firms.
To truly meet the changing needs of Canadian consumers and small businesses in a digital age, this balance of power in the financial industry must shift. Progressive and inclusive innovation requires banking providers to welcome competition by partnering with fintechs and other third-party providers who can help them excel in today’s digitally-driven world. Not only could this positively shift the equilibrium in the financial services industry, but it could also redefine the very nature of relationships between FIs and emerging partners in consumer-centric innovation.
Partnerships between Canadian FIs and FinTechs have already begun across the ecosystem, with large financial institutions and notable FinTechs partnering to offer Canadians new products and services. As other market players such as Tech Giants (Ex. Apple, Google, etc.) and Challenger Banks (Ex. PC Financial) begin to offer Canadians financial services and products, partnerships will play a critical role for FIs and FinTechs to maintain their market share and relationships with Canadian consumers. FinTechs will leverage large FI’s consumer base and trust while FI’s will benefit from FinTech’s agility as well as digital-first solutions.
Mahi Sall: What do you think are some of the quick wins in terms of Open Banking use cases that banks and fintechs in Canada should prioritize rolling out?
Michelle Beyo: Open Banking will create a number of opportunities for exciting and innovative products and services for all Canadians. Specifically, hyper personalized products and services, increased access to consumer spending insights, the acceleration of credit applications, and account aggregation are just a few of the use cases that Open Banking in Canada will unlock. Some of the best opportunities include the creation of personalized financial products and services that will target the 5 million underbanked and 1 million unbanked Canadians in which today’s financial products and services do not address their current needs.
Open Banking will help those who are underbanked or unbanked have greater access and usage to financial products and services that they need as well as improve the quality and introduce innovative solutions to all consumers. Open Banking could deliver tools that would support Canadians in improving their financial outcomes by enabling them to use their information to secure better rates or products, manage their small businesses more easily, and access new tools that would help improve their financial health. It has the potential to be particularly beneficial to small business owners, consumers facing challenges in managing their finances, and those with limited or non-traditional credit histories.
Mahi Sall: Chief among the factors affecting the take-off of Open Banking is low adoption by consumers. What could Canada do differently in order to pre-empt this risk?
Michelle Beyo: In order for Open Banking to be successful in Canada, consumer awareness and education will need to be at the forefront. For most stakeholders across the Canadian ecosystem, the benefits and potential use cases for Open Banking are quite familiar. Therefore it will be the responsibility of all players, including the Canadian government, Banks, FinTechs and others, to help consumers and small businesses to navigate the new world that Open Banking will usher in. With the opportunity and ability to learn from other first to market players such as the UK and Australia, the Canadian government, FIs, and FinTechs need to create tools and other resources to help Canadians become financially literate and feel empowered about their money.
Mahi Sall: Any final thoughts?
Michelle Beyo: With the release of the Open Banking recommendations report by the Government of Canada’s Expert Advisory Panel on Consumer Directed Finance and the selection of the Open Banking Lead in March 2022, the Canadian ecosystem has taken steps towards implementing its Open Banking regime. As the implementation phases advance, OFNC looks forward to collaborating with the Open Banking Lead and their team, along with the rest of the Canadian ecosystem, to help create an Open Banking framework that is inclusive and that will allow Canadian Consumers as well as SMEs to control their data while accessing competitive financial services. The successful implementation of Open Banking will be significant for the eventual implementation of Open Finance, which is the next step beyond Open Banking, enabling access and sharing of consumer data to even more financial products and services — not just banking. Building on Open Banking, Open Finance is about simplifying sharing of more layers of data to enable new financial applications. Allowing people to connect information from various services provides opportunities for more holistic and personalized offerings. The time is now for Canada to leverage this momentum to drive innovation and expand financial inclusion.
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Links you may be interested in:
Mahi Sall is an Ambassador of the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada “NCFA”, and an Expert on Fintech-Bank Partnerships. He is based in Berlin, Germany.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Canada’s Open Banking Journey: Interview with Steve Boms, Executive Director Financial Data and Technology Association – North America “FDATA”
NCFA Canada | Mahi Sall | Dec 5, 2022
Thought Leadership Series of Expert interviews and insights related to a made-in-Canada open banking regime
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada (NCFA), true to its mission of providing education, industry stewardship, networking, growth, and funding opportunities for innovative financial technologies and related sectors, is pleased to launch a brand new thought leadership series on Open Banking led by Berlin-based NCFA ambassador and independent expert in Fintech-Bank Partnerships Mahi Sall.
NCFA is proudly contributing this thought leadership series to help shape a system that will bring profound changes in how financial services will be created, distributed, and consumed in Canada over decades to come. Our hope is that Canada’s Open Banking system will improve economic outcomes, improve market efficiencies and competitiveness, and enable consumers to access new and innovative financial services in a way that is secure, efficient, and consumer-centric.
The series is called ‘Canada’s Open Banking Journey’ and aims to aggregate international and domestic perspectives of Open Banking/Finance expert practitioners from around the globe to advance dialogues, key considerations, and explore potential solutions for the development of a made in Canada open banking regime with the following timeline:
- Sep 2018: Canada’s Open Banking journey officially began when the government established a multi-stakeholder Advisory Committee tasked to conduct a review into the merits of Open Banking
- Apr 2021: Advisory committee publishes final recommendations
- Mar 2022: Government appoints Abraham Tachjian – PwC Canada as Canada’s Open Banking lead responsible for convening industry, government and consumers in designing the foundation of the system of Open Banking for a launch in 2023.
- Oct 2023: Phase 1 implementation expected
NCFA Canada's Open Banking Journey Series:
Interview Begins
”As the government advances critically important initiatives to modernize Canada’s financial services market, including open banking and payment modernization, the voices of consumers and small businesses must be at the center of the conversation”.
-- Steve Boms, Executive Director Financial Data and Technology Association - North America “FDATA”
Mahi Sall: Please tell us about yourself and FDATA North America
Steve Boms: Steve Boms, Executive Director FDATA North America, Founder & President of Allon Advocacy LLC.
FDATA North America was founded in early 2018 by several financial firms whose technology-based products and services allow consumers and small and medium enterprises (“SMEs”) to improve their financial wellbeing.
We are a regional chapter of FDATA Global, which was the driving force for Open Banking in the United Kingdom, and which continues to provide technical expertise to policymakers and to regulatory bodies internationally that are contemplating, designing, and implementing open finance frameworks. With chapters in North America, Europe, Australasia, Latin America, and India, FDATA Global has established itself as an expert in the design, implementation, and governance of open finance standards and frameworks globally since its inception in 2013.
We count innovative leaders such as the Alliance for Innovative Regulation, APImetrics, Basis Theory, Betterment, BillGO, Codat, Direct ID, Equitable Bank, Envestnet Yodlee, Experian, Finansytech, Fiserv, Flinks, Hank Payments, Interac, Intuit, Inverite, Kabbage, Mogo, Morningstar, M Science, MX, Petal, Plaid, Questrade, SaltEdge, Trustly, ValidiFi, Vaultree, VoPay, Wealthica, and Xero, among others, as our members.
Mahi Sall: Chief among the factors affecting the take-off of Open Banking is low adoption by consumers. What could Canada do differently than other jurisdictions in order to pre-empt this risk?
Steve Boms: I would respectfully disagree with the premise of this question. Millions of Canadians are already using open finance tools today offered by dozens of FDATA North America member companies. At last count, in excess of five million Canadians were utilizing open finance tools offered by just our members in Canada. Moreover, open finance is not itself the product; it is the rails upon which products and services are offered to consumers. Said another way: Canadians are already benefiting from open finance. The implementation of a formalized open finance regime is a means of providing ubiquitous access to open finance tools regardless of the financial institution with whom one banks.
Mahi Sall: Speak about Open Banking limitations and the most common misconceptions people have about it?
Steve Boms: Open finance’s ability to spur innovation and competition is almost entirely limited by how policymakers design, implement, and ultimately govern their open finance systems. The technological barriers to consumer control of data are minimal and decreasing by the day, particularly as APIs and other modern data communication systems are rolled out across various sectors of the economy. That’s basically why FDATA exists- to be a strong, vigilant advocate for open finance’s potential to the very policymakers who will determine its form and function.
Perhaps the most common misconception of open finance is that it will inherently present a cybersecurity risk to banks and data holders. However, we have stressed since our inception that this risk has so far been entirely speculative, and there are no examples of data breaches in open finance frameworks – formalized or otherwise – due to a third-party data sharing relationship with a fintech. To further address this concern, we have also repeatedly advocated, mostly through comment letters to regulatory agencies, that third party fintech providers should be entirely responsible for all elements of cybersecurity, due diligence, regulatory compliance and consumer protection- and are perfectly capable of doing so. In fact, we are opposed to the idea of banks and data holders retaining responsibility or liability for such damages, since this provides them the pretext to arbitrarily limit data access, and cut it off in some extreme cases. The details of how third party providers must go about ensuring privacy, data, and cybersecurity will be properly developed through an accreditation process. Once such process is devised, any accredited third party financial provider should have continuous access to customer-permissioned data from any and all Canadian banks that participate in the open finance system.
Mahi Sall: In the early days of Open Banking some European banks provided in addition to APIs a Modified Customer Interface (MCI) as alternative means for third party providers (TPPs) to get access to customer data. Would you foresee the need for Canadian banks to deploy fallback options? If so, what could be some of the alternatives?
Steve Boms: Yes. Any realistic view of open finance in Canada must consider the need for fallback options. The vast, overwhelming majority of customer-permissioned financial data sharing in Canada currently occurs via credential-based screen scraping. While all stakeholders in the market would prefer to transition to token-based APIs, it is unrealistic to imagine that 100% of data access will quickly transition to this data access method. Accordingly, fallback options will need to remain.
The harsh reality is that Canada’s financial system is not yet ready to eliminate existing technological methods of accessing customer data without massive detriments to consumer financial health. This is a lesson clearly learned from other, more advanced markets like the United Kingdom, which retain screen scraping as a connectivity method either as a fallback option or for data not available through APIs. In the absence of a fully developed, robust API environment, screen scraping is a necessary tool to enable universal consumer and SME data access.
“ Regulatory certainty and clarity will be key to ensuring that this new open finance marketplace develops to its maximum potential.”
Mahi Sall: What must be thought of and accounted for at this early stage of Open Banking in Canada in order to ensure compatibility and interoperability at regional/international level?
Steve Boms: Regulatory certainty and clarity will be key to ensuring that this new open finance marketplace develops to its maximum potential. We have been working with Canada’s independent banking regulator the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) to ensure that their efforts to modernize third-party risk management do not interfere with open finance development. Since the open finance accreditation standards in Canada will almost certainly include cybersecurity requirements for third-party providers, harmonization of efforts between the Department of Finance’s open finance work and OSFI’s approach to third-party cybersecurity risk will therefore be essential. We’ve also urged OSFI to clearly distinguish between what it considers to be bank third party providers under its supervisory guidelines from what will soon be accredited open finance participants to avoid any confusion.
“Half of Canadians feel stress when interacting with Canada’s financial services sector.”
Mahi Sall: Any final thoughts?
Steve Boms: We recently commissioned a landmark survey of Canadian consumers along with Paytechs of Canada to measure attitudes toward the existing financial services marketplace and open banking. It found that more than half of Canadians feel stress when interacting with Canada’s financial services sector and believe they would benefit from increased competition and transparency in the financial services market. The findings indicate this is especially true among women, young people, and new Canadians. Among the biggest sources of dissatisfaction are high fees and a lack of choice.
As the government advances critically important initiatives to modernize Canada’s financial services market, including open banking and payment modernization, the voices of consumers and small businesses must be at the center of the conversation. These first-of-their-kind surveys clearly demonstrate Canadians’ hunger for a more competitive, transparent, and innovative Canadian financial system.
# # #
Links you may be interested in:
Mahi Sall is an Ambassador of the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada “NCFA”, and an Expert on Fintech-Bank Partnerships. He is based in Berlin, Germany.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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NYT DealBook Summit: Sam Bankman-Fried Interviewed About the Collapse of FTX
New York Times | Dec 1, 2022
Image: NYT DealBook Summit
Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder of the cryptocurrency firm FTX, gave his first live interview since his company filed for bankruptcy. Andrew Ross-Sorkin of The New York Times asked Bankman-Fried to address allegations of fraud and mismanagement and whether the people and organizations who are owed money will get any of it back.
Watch the full interview from the DealBook Summit event.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Audio Interviews (post-bankruptcy) with Sam Bankman-Fried on FTX Collapse
Coindesk | Sam Kessler, Nelson Wang | Nov 29, 2022
Image: youtube
Among the more unprecedented elements of the FTX saga has been the fact that Bankman-Fried, who was raised by two lawyers, can’t seem to keep his mouth shut despite mounting legal threats.
Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire blew up in spectacular fashion at the beginning of this month, and questions continue to swirl around the motives and mechanics that caused crypto exchange FTX and its sister company, Alameda Research, to collapse.
See: CB Insights: FTX ‘Bagholders’ — Investments and M&A Portfolio Map
After cryptic tweet threads and a viral DM exchange with a Vox reporter in which he said “f**k regulators” and admitted that his philanthropic identity was largely manufactured for PR reasons, Bankman-Fried’s actual voice is being heard for the first time post-FTX collapse with newly released audio from Tiffany Fong – a crypto investor-turned-whistleblower who initially gained attention for leaking audio that showed Celsius Network, the now-bankrupt crypto lending platform, planned to use a cynical “crypto-based solution” to repay users of its Earn Lending platform.
First audio interviews with SBF post-bankruptcy
First interview with Tiffany Fong
In this phone call interview, Sam Bankman-Fried or SBF, former CEO and founder of FTX, chats with me about filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the alleged backdoor, the use of FTT as collateral, ties to the Democratic Party, laundering Ukraine money, the solvency / insolvency of FTX US, lawyers, and the jurisdictional battle ahead as well as his next steps forward.
See: CFTC Says Bitcoin is the Only Commodity | ECB Criticizes Digital Asset Sector for Facilitating Illegal Activity
Second interview with Tiffany Fong
SBF Talks FTX user funds on Alameda, $8 billion hole illiquidity, CZ, the run on the bank. Sam Bankman-Fried shows remorse
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