FinTech is experiencing exceptional growth, bringing significant technological advances to the field of finance. France is one of the countries contributing recognized expertise. Interview with Amaury de La Lance, CEO ofAston iT Finance, FinTech specializing in customer account management (intercompany credit) winner in the Big Data category of the World Innovation Competition. And André Lévy-Lang (56), President of the Louis Bachelier Institute.
Can you briefly define FinTech?
Lévy-Lang :
"FinTech is the group of companies that apply mathematical tools (probability, statistics, game theory, for example) and computer science (Big Data, intelligent machines) to finance. FinTech has always existed, for example with actuarial science, but it has experienced significant growth due to the considerable progress made in its tools, applied mathematics and computer science, over the past 20 years."
The FinTech industry is experiencing a boom in innovation and development. What's the reality?
De La Lance :
"FinTech is in vogue for two reasons. The first is that, in addition to being the largest source of available and analyzable data, finance has not seen any major changes in its operating methods. The second reason lies in the industrial revolution that technologies have been undergoing over the past three years, which can be summed up in three key words:
- SaaS : for the publisher, it is no longer a question of selling software but of offering a service solution that allows the customer to pay rent instead of buying expensive software. It is no longer a product but a solution into which technology and services are integrated.
- Cloud Computing : a very simple concept. It involves relieving the customer of the cost of IT infrastructure and its management. The servers are no longer the responsibility of the company but are outsourced to a specialized service provider. The additional advantage is that the customer no longer pays fixed costs but only a cost per use based on their consumption.
- Big Data : this innovative term means an in-depth statistical analysis.
The novelty lies in the compilation of the three elements (SaaS, Cloud and Big Data). They offer the possibility of processing in real time a virtually unlimited amount of data with analytical tools that allow a more detailed and broader study than before.
Is this an alternative to banks?
De La Lance :
"The FinTech financial approach is intended to be disruptive. It involves competing with banks by providing financing (shadow banking). This, however, implies bearing the credit risk. The model is a success in B2C, but it remains a risky issue for B2B. The mass effect and detailed knowledge of the market are major challenges in securing the financier's risk.
The second approach is technological. With current players, whether banks or securitization funds, we favor a partnership approach. We provide these operators with the latest technological resources, allowing them to access new distribution channels. Better visibility and security of their financing, particularly with our Big Data Scoring tools. Thus, in real time, the financier knows the precise situation of its clients. This is a strategic issue."
What about French know-how in this area?
Lévy-Lang :
"France is a recognized world leader in the field of FinTech due to the quality of its mathematics, research and teaching schools, the quality of its computer scientists and its economists. With several world-class centers of excellence in its schools and universities and numerous startups, France has confidently positioned itself in the FinTech market. The fact that Aston iT Finance, a French company, was the winner in Big Data of the Global Innovation Competition among more than 900 international candidates is a striking example of this."
Excerpt from the magazine La Jaune et La Rouge n°703 from March 2015
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