The latest issue of Businesslife, exploring the rapidly advancing progress of technology in business and finance, is now available.
The influence of technology in everyday business practices and processes is accelerating at a more rapid rate than ever – but Channel Islands firms need to be alert to the challenges thrown up by technological development, as well as the opportunities.
That’s the message delivered by the latest edition of Businesslife magazine, which explores a variety of tech and digital issues affecting Channel Islands businesses today.
Jon Watkins, Editor-in-Chief of Businesslife, said: “What we found when looking at this topic is that the pace of the digital and tech revolution has only accelerated during the pandemic – as firms have responded not only to new ways of working but also to changing customer expectations.
“We also identified that this rapid advance is creating challenges for firms – from the need to overhaul their systems and processes, to challenges around cultural change and what their future business models might look like.”
Payment plans
Among the topics covered, our article on the digitalisation of payments across business sectors – specifically in the world of fund and wealth administration – reveals that the sector is finally getting to grips with payment automation.
However, this is also throwing up challenges for those in the sector. Our article highlights how such developments don’t just require action on the part of the banks and the controllers of the financial systems, but also place a burden on firms to make cultural as well as system changes.
Working patterns driving change
Another issue accelerated by the pandemic has been remote working, with technology coming to the fore as we retreated to our homes to work.
We look at just how remote staff could become, with people even working from different jurisdictions – on the basis that if you're willing to allow your staff to ‘work from anywhere’, it opens up a far greater talent pool.
However, that’s not for everyone – and our article finds that some firms remain concerned about cross-jurisdiction legal issues and the inability to physically see their staff.
Elsewhere, we ask whether the rise of fintechs – and the entrance into financial services of some of the big tech players – might not only throw up challenges for traditional players, but also threaten the existence of traditional banks altogether.
While offering many organisations the opportunity to enhance their offering and build better relationships, tech, it seems, may also be the biggest threat to having a future at all.
Elsewhere in this issue…
We also look at:
• How AI and machine learning are changing the way businesses operate
• The latest cyber threats facing your business and how you can protect yourself against them
• The rise of regtech and what it means for the Channel Islands’ status
• How banks are using sentiment data to understand their customers' needs
• What consolidation in the market means for the future of the funds sector.
Click here to view our Technology Edition online.
The physical version of the magazine will be available from its usual distribution points shortly.