Make it personal at Sibos & Money 20/20

The Covid pandemic has hugely accelerated the adoption of fintech applications and the broader trend towards digitisation in financial services. And now 2022 is shaping up to be a milestone year for the industry, with big new opportunities both for suppliers and finance sector customers. The pandemic restrictions are being lifted, and savvy suppliers are grabbing the chance for face-to-face time with customers at this year’s major trade shows, Sibos and Money 20/20 . . .

As always, the shows give the industry a platform to debate fintech’s hottest issues and for suppliers to showcase solutions and make sales. 

Cyber-security remains a hot topic. The invasion of Ukraine has again highlighted its vital importance, both in terms of safeguarding customer assets and data, and also ensuring system resilience against attack. A number of widely publicised breaches at major institutions have underscored the reputational and financial risk of security shortcomings.

Big data and AI integration is sure to feature. It’s such a compelling proposition for financial institutions, but the technologies are challenging, and cost and maintenance issues have yet to be fully addressed. Similarly, blockchain technology is highly attractive in principle, allowing all stages of a transaction to be tracked and secured, but integrating blockchain is proving problematic for many institutions. There are big opportunities for Fintech suppliers who can develop solutions combining robust application and cost effectiveness. 

Regulatory compliance is always an essential for fintech as across the industry, but after some high profile fintech failures (eg Wirecard in Germany) regulatory crackdowns in the US and China have turned up the heat. Major financial institutions are now spending big money on regulatory compliance, and technology solutions are an appealing alternative to yet more compliance staff. 

With the finance industry hungry for solutions, the opportunities for innovative fintech suppliers have never been greater. 

Forward thinking suppliers have been beavering away on product development throughout the pandemic. But they’ve been remote, and although online interaction with customers has progressed in leaps and bounds - including the development of hybrid trade shows - nothing beats the opportunity to meet personally. Remote product demonstrations may be technically flawless, but they can never quite match the power and immediacy of face-to-face interaction.

The Sibos and Money 20/20 shows are the chance to make up for lost time. And we believe that to grasp the opportunity exhibitors need to make it personal. Exhibition spaces need to be carefully thought through and designed to maximise the scope for that personal contact we’ve missed through the pandemic. Yes, it’s a tech show, and stands obviously need to reflect and incorporate the product tech, but personal interaction is so often what clinches the sale. 

Of course we mustn’t overlook the lessons we’ve learned from our two years of remoteness. In particular we’ve seen how targeted use of social media can engage customers well beyond traditional forums. Which is why we believe success at future trade shows will combine a great physical space with a linked social media programme both before and after the show itself.  

If you’re exhibiting at these shows, we hope you grasp the opportunities. And we’d love to work with you to deliver a trade show to remember.