Credit Shift Webio

This podcast episode covers industry news, fintech developments, and the expected impact of GenAI on the UK competitive landscape.
Host, Paul Sweeney (Webio CSO), discusses the rise in UK debt repayments, the cost of living pressures, and the financial vulnerability of millions of people.
Paul also explores the development of Stripe over the past 10 years and its new product launches. Additionally, our host delves into a new report from London Business School and the Institute of Directors, assessing the expected impact of GenAI on the UK competitive landscape.
Takeaways
Rise in UK debt repayments and cost of living pressures
Financial vulnerability of millions of people
Development of Stripe and its new product launches
Expected impact of GenAI on the UK competitive landscape
Sources
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/rise-in-debt-repayments-continues-to-hit-household-budgets/
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/nearly-1-million-people-only-10-a-week-away-from-poverty/
https://jasshah.substack.com/p/fintech-rr-stripe-growth-product
https://www.iod.com/app/uploads/2024/05/IoD-LBS-Policy-Paper-Assessing-the-expected-impact-of-generative-AI-on-the-UK-competitive-landscape-90514166d3cf6e8f4ee9211073a9ae30.pdf

In this episode, Paul Sweeney (Webio CSO) and Delia Jones (Webio COO) discuss the latest credit and finance stories such as vulnerable customer identification and OpenAI's voice assistant. They also touch on the ethics and privacy concerns surrounding AI and data usage, the scrutiny of payment system regulators, and the potential of on-device computing.
Takeaways
Identifying vulnerable customers and managing conversations appropriately is crucial in the credit industry.
Telecom customers often turn to their service providers for information about debt support.
MasterCard and Visa are facing scrutiny over their market dominance and fees.
Klarna is using AI to draft legal contracts and its employees are using AI tools for communication and marketing.
OpenAI has released an impressive voice assistant, but there are concerns about the ethics and privacy of AI and data usage.
Visa is introducing initiatives such as flexible credential, tap to confirm identity, and data tokens to enhance payment experiences.
On-device computing and personal AI assistants are becoming more prevalent, but trust and control over data usage are important considerations.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Webio finalist for Credit Award: "Best Technology Provider – Vulnerable Customer Identification"
01:44 General Industry News: Credit Card Balances and Telecom Customer Debt Support
04:07 Scrutiny of MasterCard and Visa
05:05 Klarna's Use of AI in Legal Contracts and Communication
12:19 Visa's Initiatives to Enhance Payment Experiences
14:14 OpenAI's Impressive Voice Assistant and Ethics Concerns
20:51 The Future of AI and Personal AI Assistants
23:57 Conclusion and Invitation to Explore Webio's Interviews
Sources
https://www.creditstrategy.co.uk/creditawards/credit-awards-shortlist
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/outstanding-balances-on-credit-cards-continue-to-increase/
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/telecoms-customers-turning-to-their-providers-for-debt-advice/
https://www.ft.com/content/e3e6a1d6-f412-4ee7-95af-be95db2c0c37
https://www.celent.com/insights/263739649
Produced by: Webio

Chris Booth, the product owner for NatWest Group's AI assistant Cora, discusses the accessibility work NatWest has been doing and the journey of improving their conversational AI.
NatWest started by building their own front-end chat interface to make Cora more accessible and usable, allowing users to control such aspects as font size and typing speed. They are now also exploring dynamic interfaces and voice for accessibility to create a more fluid and conversational experience.
Chris talks about the challenges of using large language models in customer-facing environments and he further explores the concept of language models and their role in AI systems.
The speakers go on to discuss the use of prompting in language models and the need for tools to control and assure the quality of the prompt and response.
The conversation then looks into the validation and oversight of AI systems and the speakers discuss the limitations and boundaries of LLMs and the potential impact of multimodal inputs.
Takeaways
NatWest has built their own front-end chat interface to make their AI assistant, Cora, more accessible and usable.
Using large language models in customer-facing environments requires careful governance and risk management.
There is potential for creating a trans-organisational repository of conversational content to improve customer experiences.
Personalised experiences are a key focus for NatWest, and they are exploring ways to leverage AI to provide personalised financial guidance.
Version control is a challenge in AI systems and the use of smaller, more focused models can help address this issue.
Understanding the limitations and boundaries of language models is important when building an AI assistant.
Multimodal inputs have the potential to greatly impact the capabilities of language models.
Agencies, startups, and small businesses can focus on fine-tuning and RAG stages to stay competitive in the AI space.
Sound Bites
"We had big ambitions on making Cora far more accessible and usable."
"We're doing really early stages exploring with mobile. How do we create a much more dynamic, flexible interface?"
"We're using it in a lot of ways at the moment. And I think what's so fun and interesting being with Cora and retail is we have by far the highest bar of governance and risk standards."
"Multiple small models or tiny models will actually allow you to control because you can keep them small, you can keep them local and they'll do the job for you."
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Chris Booth
06:50 The Journey to LLMs
14:53 The Idea of Artificial Sentience
35:19 Understanding the Limitations and Boundaries of Language Models
41:31 The Importance of Continuous Analysis and Fit
For more:
Webio: https://webio.com
Optima Partners: https://optimapartners.co.uk/
NatWest Group: https://www.natwestgroup.com/

This episode covers the stories in the credit industry that caught our eye, including overdrafts, interest charges on personal loans, universal credit, FinTech, buy now pay later, and open finance.
We highlight the high number of people in the UK who are overdrawn and the expensive nature of overdrafts. We also discusses the impact of interest charges on personal loans and the potential benefits of the new universal credit system.
In the FinTech space, the episode explores tap-to-pay solutions, buy now pay later services, and technology innovations in payments. Lastly, it covers the opportunities and benefits of open finance for individuals and small businesses.

Takeaways
Many people in the UK are overdrawn and overdrafts can be an expensive way to borrow.
Interest charges on personal loans can add up significantly, especially for those with lower credit scores.
The new universal credit system in the UK is expected to benefit workers who rent.
FinTech innovations include tap-to-pay solutions and buy now pay later services.
Technology advancements in payments can improve the payment process and help small businesses with late payments.
Open finance has the potential to improve access to finance for individuals and small businesses.

Sound Bites

"One in five people in the UK are overdrawn by an average of £697."
"A lower credit score could add £2,499 worth of interest on a £3,000 loan."
"UK workers who rent are set to be almost £4,000 a year better off with the new universal credit system."

Sources
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/consumer-spend-1-4bn-on-bank-overdraft-interest-each-year/
https://businessplus.ie/tech/payments-uk/
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/universal-credit-change-money-050028301.html
https://cfit.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/CFIT-Open-Finance-Blueprint.pdf

In this podcast episode, Paul Sweeney and Cormac O'Neill cover topics such as company defaults, payment terms, transaction fees, and the adoption of AI in the banking sector.
The hosts also explore the concept of Gen AI and its potential impact on various industries. The conversation highlights the importance of trust, ethics, and the human touch in the adoption of AI technologies.

Takeaways

Company defaults and payment terms are key factors in the credit industry.
Visa Card and MasterCard have agreed to cut US transaction fees, which will save merchants billions of dollars.
Gen AI has the potential to augment virtually every job in the banking sector.
Trust, ethics, and the human touch are important considerations in the adoption of AI technologies.

Sound Bites
"For every 1% drop in profitability, it could increase payment terms by seven days."
"Merchants will be able to charge different prices to customers based on which credit card they use."
"LLMs raise the floor, not the ceiling."

Sources
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/apr/05/thames-water-parent-tells-creditors-it-has-defaulted-on-debt
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/drafts/profitability-squeeze-could-extend-business-payment-delays-further/
https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2024/03/26/visa-and-mastercard-agree-30bn-settlement-over-us-transaction-fees/
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/klarna-launches-credit-card-challenge/
https://sytaylor.substack.com/p/generative-ai-word-salads-robinhoods
https://reports.jpmorganchase.com/investor-relations/2023/ar-ceo-letters.htm?
https://www.americanbanker.com/creditunions/list/banking-on-ai-how-financial-institutions-are-deploying-new-tech

In this episode, Paul Sweeney (CSO) and Cormac O'Neill (CEO) discuss recent news stories and trends in the credit industry. They provide updates from their recent attendance at a financial PEVC All Things Funding Summit in London.
The conversation covers topics such as Customer Duty and the need for early warning systems, the closing gap in performance between OpenAI and other models, the growing significance of brand and trust in borrowing decisions, concerns and challenges of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) schemes, and the impact of AI on the contact center industry.
Takeaways
The BNPL part of the credit industry is seeing a shift towards the importance of brand and trust in borrowing decisions, alongside interest rates.
Buy Now Pay Later schemes are gaining popularity, especially among younger customers, but there are concerns about their impact on vulnerable groups and the need for regulation.
AI is having an impact on the contact centre industry, reducing the need for new agents and increasing efficiency. However, there is still a need for trained personnel to handle complex cases.
The adoption of AI in the credit industry is a gradual process, but it is expected to have a significant effect in the future.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Updates
01:03 Financial PEVC All Things Funding Summit
06:54 OpenAI Gap Closing
10:25 The Significance of Brand and Trust in Borrowing Decisions
12:19 Concerns and Challenges of Buy Now Pay Later
Sources
https://www.credit-connect.co.uk/news/bnpl-three-times-as-popular-as-pay-day-loan-lending/
https://synthedia.substack.com/p/inflection-reveals-a-new-model-rivaling
https://fintech.lenvi.com/consumer-borrowing-report-2024?
https://www.nojitter.com/contact-center-customer-experience/ai%E2%80%99s-impact-contact-center-staffing-%E2%80%93-bittersweet-update