Get the latest news and insights from the retail banking space.

In a landscape where it’s so easy for people to switch between digital products and services, brands are having to work harder to get into the customer’s mind, and more importantly - to stay there. Standing out from the crowd is as important as ever. So why do fintechs look increasingly similar?

We were promised that fintech disruptors were going to revolutionise banking and sweep away the legacy players forever. So, what happened?

I wrote about the underbanked phenomenon in Eastern Europe a few weeks ago. Mainly I talked about which basic services are used, not used, and why.

With the new year picking up a head of steam, it’s time to turn our attention to the trends and themes set to shape financial services in 2023. Here at 11:FS, we’re more convinced than ever that UK banks are running out of time to address their core banking issues.

While chatting with my grandma on my annual trip to Romania this year, I had an epiphany. She is underbanked! So is my mom, uncle, cousin, and neighbour - you get the gist.

I recently sat down with Rhian Lewis, co-founder of Count My Crypto and Sara Walker from IG to discuss which cryptocurrencies could come close to bitcoin. Take a look at some of the points we covered below, or head over to IG to watch the full interview.

Once upon a time, social media and finance apps might’ve seemed like strange bedfellows.

Getting tech right in banks is hard. We get this because our experts have worked in some of the biggest financial services institutions and experienced how things can be done differently. In this article, we’ll share some of the insights that we’ve learnt along the way.

Around the globe, millions are feeling the pinch as the cost-of-living crisis continues. The biggest fall in living standards since records began is forecast in the UK, while inflation rates are starting to cool after a tumultuous year across the pond.

One of the phrases you often encounter when reading things about mental health is "It's OK to not be OK." Whilst I get the sentiment, as someone who has been there, it really isn't OK. It sucks.

We all employ a user-centred design (UCD) approach to inform what products we build and how they should work, but all that customer insight gives us one oft-overlooked learning: the actual language customers use to speak about their problems.

You don’t have to spend much time in retail banking before you come across legacy systems - a catch-all term often used to explain why banks are so slow and unresponsive.

Tucked away in a small corner of the WeWork offices in Aldgate Tower, I sat down with Ross Gallagher. Financial inclusion is the touchstone on financial products for Ross. Regular host of the Fintech Insider podcast with a history in financial services consulting and research. Ross is known around the office as a tupperware fiend and always up for a laugh but as with many people who work for 11:FS he has a real passion for finance and financial inclusion in particular.

In a recent report EY point out that the big advantage the UK has in “Fintech” is it’s progressive policy from Government and Regulators. This post examines the latest policy the regulatory sandbox; to understand how it might work, what companies entering it need to know, and how other jurisdictions could repeat the trick. Can it help financial services be a bit more awesome?

Recently, Nick Miller, Senior Ventures Strategist at 11:FS, published an article on why ESG investing is broken. If you haven't already, go and give it a read before you dive into this one.