The tech industry is revolutionizing the world day by day and it is happening right in front of our eyes. Technology has influenced areas such as health, education, communication, entertainment, and especially finance. Fintech is becoming more and more prevalent throughout the world and is making a lot of impact. Companies are leveraging new technologies to create new and better financial services for consumers and businesses.
I went to Fintech in a 5G World hosted by Alley powered by Verizon. At this event, four really cool companies got a chance to demo their product and talk about their impacts and how 5G will assist them. I still have no clue exactly what 5G is but you’ll be about to download a 2 hour movie in seconds rather than hours. Out of the 4 companies, there were 2 that really stood out to me as game changers.
Anyone who hates getting coins as change, I want you to take a look at Bucket. Bucket runs on blockchain technology and has a global mission to get rid of coins. These coins are made from metals such as nickel, copper, and zinc where are essential to our planet. Looking at this company through a business lens, it saves retailers money and time. What blew my mind is that it costs 1.7 cents to make a penny. That's ridiculous it costs more to make it than it's worth. For retailers, the time it takes for your employees to get exact change (let’s say 89 cents) effects your business. Bucket's technology eliminates all the headache.
Let's say you pay $1.25 for a coffee and hand over the cashier a $5 bill. You would expect to receive $3.75 back but the cashier only gives you $3 instead. Now on your receipt there is a code that holds your 75 cents. Once you scan this code on the Bucket app, that gets transferred to your digital piggy bank. I think this is a genius idea and I highly recommend any retailers to use it. Check out their product here.
For cyber security reasons I’m still hesitant to get an Alexa or Google Home. If you already have one, you should consider BOND.ai. The founder Uday Akkaraju started his product demo by speaking about Amazon, Netflix, and Facebook. They’re significant because all of these companies take consumer expectations into consideration. Think about the recommendations playlist on Netflix, how Amazon can show you items you might be interested in from your browsing history, or how your feed on Facebook is specifically catered to you. These companies find importance in creating algorithms that take in information and put the best content in your face based off your habits. BOND takes this same approach but with your finances.
BOND is a conversational AI platform that will understand your financial goals and enable you to meet them in the shortest possible time. The technology will help you optimize your daily spending, refinance loans, create a savings auto-pilot and even help you invest. What makes them different is their focus on empathy. Their AI aims to understand every aspect of you, right from perceptions, aspirations, limitations and helps your financial growth. Interested in learning more? Check out their product.
Cyrpterium and Two Sense.ai were the other two companies who presented at this event. Two Sense takes a different approach to two factor authentication that’s very innovative. If you’re interested in cryptocurrencies like I am, Crypterium is a company you should consider checking out. Bucket is playing the idea of cryptocurrency as well.
The combination of fintech, blockchain, and crypto will change the world in years to come. These technologies are still very early but are making a significant impact.