Over the last 18 months, UK credit card borrowing has accelerated, outstanding balances have surpassed pre-pandemic highs, and some of the UK’s largest fintechs are making increasingly aggressive moves into lending.

AI assistants already help people compare products, check availability and plan purchases. Agentic commerce extends that role to placing the order: a customer sets a budget and a few conditions, then gives the software permission to complete the purchase.

Financial institutions are moving quickly into agentic AI. Coding agents, workflow agents, document agents, service agents and operational agents are already entering the enterprise. Many will create useful gains, some of them genuinely impressive. But that is not the real test.
Barclays is acquiring the UK arm of GoHenry, a money app for 6 to 18-year olds. With a reported price tag of £180 million for around 500,000 active accounts, £360 per head is a chunky investment.

Financial services should be designing products and services that help buyers understand all of the costs involved in their end-to-end financial journey before committing.

For the past decade, the banking industry has been focused on developing frictionless interfaces. Financial institutions have prioritised seamless transactions, instant gratification, and engaging gamified features in a bid to build the ultimate digital financial experience.

The need for better, tailored support through the customer experience is clear, but few are accounting for the fundamental shift that financial services has experienced with the introduction of AI.
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“It’s clear they’re not slowing down in transforming the financial landscape.” Those were the words of Jacqueline Dewey, CEO of Smart Money People, speaking about 11:FS after we claimed our fifth...
The UK’s largest digital bank once again beat RBS and NatWest to the top spot in 11:FS Pulse's best of UK banking chart.
As the Saudi fintech market matures, a new challenge is emerging. Most fintech interactions, whether payments, BNPL, or other services, remain fundamentally transactional.

When a customer reaches checkout today, they may get a choice to pay now, split the cost, or move it into credit. That is a very different starting point from the old model of applying for credit in advance.

Loyalty is defined as “a strong feeling of support or allegiance”. However, in the context of financial services, it is more accurately defined as engineered persistence: a series of subconscious cues that steer customers toward familiar choices.

For years, banks have relied on OTPs as a second factor for logins and sensitive actions. Sent via SMS, these short codes were designed to add security on top of a password. But they have become one of the weakest and most frustrating parts of the banking experience.

Host Benjamin Ensor - Director of Research and Strategy at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.
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In this episode, we're exploring what it takes to build modern banking technology from the ground up. Host Ross Gallagher - Head of Consulting at 11:FS - joined by Sam Everington, CEO of Engine by Starling, and Jody Bhagat, President of North America at Engine by Starling.

Host Kate Moody - Customer Strategy Director at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

In this episode, we're diving into one of the biggest challenges facing fintech growth right now: standing out. From brand building and customer acquisition to AI-powered marketing and community-led growth, we unpack how fintechs are finding, engaging and retaining customers in an increasingly crowded market. Laura Watkins - Director of Media and Marketing at 11:FS joined by marketing experts of the sector. In this episode, we're diving into one of the biggest challenges facing fintech growth right now: standing out. From brand building and customer acquisition to AI-powered marketing and community-led growth, we unpack

Host Ross Gallagher - Head of Consulting at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

In this special episode of Fintech Insider Insights, recorded live at Stripe Tour London, we're joined by two Stripe leaders to explore how the internet economy is evolving - and the infrastructure powering its next chapter.

Host Laura Watkins - Director of Media and Marketing at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

What do Arsenal, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and the Home Nations football teams have in common? They're all partnering with fintech brands.

Host Ross Gallagher - Head of Ventures at 11:FS- is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

Are stablecoins actually breaking into the mainstream financial system - or are they still largely trapped inside the fintech bubble?

Host Benjamin Ensor - Director of Research and Strategy at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

Is regulation really the thing slowing innovation down — or is the bigger challenge how firms respond to it?

Host Kate Moody - Customer Strategy Director at 11:FS - is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.
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As AI moves from supporting investment decisions to making them, what happens to trust, accountability, and control?

Host Laura Watkins - Director of Media and Marketing at 11:FS- is joined by some great guests to discuss the biggest stories from the world of financial services over the past week.

David M. Brear, our 11:FS CEO, takes us through legacy technology within banks - but of course, with a really cool Lightboard.

Fintech Marketing Podcast Season 2: Coming soon

After Dark - Open Finance: fact or fantasy?

Banks are facing a lot of challenges compared to their fintech rivals.
Welcome to episode 5 of our new video series, Decoding: Banking as a Service!
11:FS CEO David M. Brear takes to the lightboard to give us the full run-down, with examples of companies that are leading the way.
Welcome to episode 4 of our new video series, Decoding: Banking as a Service!
Welcome to episode 3 of our new video series, Decoding: Banking as a Service!
Welcome to episode 2 of our new video series, Decoding: Banking as a Service!

Welcome to episode 1 of our new video series, Decoding: Banking as a Service!

In this episode of Spotlight on LinkedIn Live, we're speaking to Paul Riseborough and Rachael Sinclair, Mission Leaders from Nationwide, about how they're switching up their business structure to ensure they are aligned to their customers and creating the most effective teams in the industry along the way.

When people discuss 'banking being broken', they often refer to the technology itself. However, that isn't necessarily the case.

Minimum Lovable Brand | 11:FS Explores

In this video, our Head of Research, Sarah Kocianski, unpacks exactly how banks make money - with the handy edition of a super cool lightboard!

The UK banking battlefield has never been more competitive. Customers expectfinancial apps that are personalised, seamless, and that genuinely make a differenc...


The UK banking battlefield has never been more competitive. Customers expectfinancial apps that are personalised, seamless, and that genuinely make a differenc...

