波士顿:2018年资本市场中的金融科技(英文 18 页)

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White Paper

Fintech in Capital Markets 2018:

Boosting Productivity Through Technology Innovation

Introduction 

After three years of buoyant activity, 2017 marked a net slowdown in capital markets fintech equity investment.1  Investment was less than half that of the previous two years, and the lowest since 2012, with venture capital firms in particular reducing their funding. 

Investment banks, by contrast, invested more in 2017, accounting for 16% of the total, their highest proportion on record.  However, the increase came from Tier 2 & 3 players. Tier 1 investment fell as large banks focused more on integrating the previous year’s investments. Investment-bank-backed fintechs received around half of all 2017 equity funding.  

Bank investment strategies also diverged. Tier 2 & 3 players invested mainly in industry-wide fintech initiatives, whereas Tier 1 banks, which have been active buyers of fintech equity for longer, took a more balanced approach, often seeking competitive advantage through standalone investments.  

Change-the-bank (CTB) spend among investment banks has been flat in recent years (a four-year CAGR of around 1%), suggesting that, despite rising fintech investment, they have underspent on innovation, probably owing to legacy IT constraints.  In addition, only a small proportion of CTB spend is true innovation, with as much as 80% focused on legacy system upgrades.  

As digitalization takes hold in capital markets, weak investment is a hindrance that may undermine growth and open the door to competitors. Financial institutions that invest in technology, on the other hand, operate more efficiently and are more productive, particularly in less-commoditized business lines such as fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC). 

Banks and underinvested capital markets incumbents can remedy the situation, but only by changing direction. Technology must be put at the heart of strategic decision making and recognized as the key enabler of innovation and new revenue streams. CEOs are required to lead the transformation, adopt tech-inspired paradigms such as Agile, and move from a product/relationship archetype to a service-focused model with automation at its core.