JPMorgan Chase, American Express and HSBC said they are leading a $40mn round into Menlo Security; banks are usually a lot more secretive about security investments but they see a wider industry potential in using isolation technology; the technology can better defend against phishing attacks which account for most breaches as employees click on a fake link that then causes malware to infect the computer; when a user clicks on a link they open a browser that really is a one time instance in the cloud and prevents malware from downloading onto a computer; while some big banks have started using the technology more there has not been a significant rush yet. Source.
Codispoti originally joined JP Morgan Chase to create a credit card that would appeal to millennials; this led to the launch of the Sapphire Reserve; now Codispoti is focused on overseeing JPMorgan’s branches and how they can better serve millennials, which make up 61% of their new customers; the current vision includes advice centers similar to Apple’s Genius Bar. Source
The new express branches are meant to help customers with routine transactions like withdrawals and deposits; customers looking for further advice or a loan would be able to connect via videoconference or go to a typical branch; they are looking to serve millennials in a more efficient way and allow them to access bankers and wealth managers through a digital experience using iPads; removing some of the human intensive areas of the bank and making it more self serve will cut down on costs and help to serve the younger, digital customers. Source.
As banks keep closing or reorganizing their branch experience JPMorgan Chase just made a big bet on branches and staff; the bank announced a 5 year $20bn investment plan that includes 400 new branches and 4,000 new jobs; the plans included expansion into 15 to 20 new markets for the branches, where most of the staff hires will occur; they also said lending will increase by 25 percent over the next 5 years. Source.
Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase and others have launched or will launch their own robo products to compete with slicker startups; after seeing the success of startups in the space the banks realized they needed to improve their offerings to keep customers and attract newer, younger ones; the trend to move away from white labeling technology to building their own is a recent one as some traditional players like UBS, State Street and John Hancock are still using services from SigFig, Motif or NextCapital. Source.
JPMorgan Chase and Barclays have joined IBM’s quantum computing network as they look to use the technology to assess risk and stay secure; Barclays is beginning to test potential uses and JPMorgan Chase is looking to leverage quantum computing for trading, portfolio optimization and risk analysis; there is a lot happening in quantum computing these days as big tech firms look to master the technology seen as potentially 100,000 times faster than classic computers; while there are clear benefits to quantum computing banks are also looking at protecting themselves from the cyber threat that hackers could exploit using the same technology. Source.
Roostify CEO Rajesh Bhat sat down with TearSheet to discuss the online mortgage market and stated we are still in the first quarter of the game; Roostify is an enterprise mortgage origination platform and has secured deals with JPMorgan Chase and Guild Mortgage; topics discussed include why mortgages are so hard to digitize, how banks have addressed the move to digital mortgages and how did Roostify come to be. Source.
JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo announced their earnings late last week and digital channels continue to be a growing force at the banks; JPMorgan Chase saw a 13 percent jump in active mobile customers to over 30 million; Wells Fargo’s growth was not as pronounced at 3 percent to over 21 million active mobile customers; this points to a broader industry trend where according to Business Insider’s Mobile Banking Competitive Edge study 83 percent of respondents use mobile banking; some recent trends the study has also seen include more attention to security, mobile transfers and users asking for more advanced features. Source.
Lending Club files an 8K for a $200mn warehouse funding agreement; JPMorgan Chase was the administrative agent and Wilmington Trust was the collateral trustee; the revolving credit facility will be with certain lenders not yet announced; the move is another step in the funding sources diversification direction the company discussed late last year. Source.
Chase is starting a new marketing campaign by using GIFs across social media channels in an effort to get millennials to use their QuickPay product by Zelle; the campaign shows a shift by the bank to make campaigns more personalized and geared at a younger target market; Donna Vieira, chief marketing officer for Chase’s consumer bank tells TearSheet, “The channels, mediums and media you use; the copy and creative form like memes and GIFs. Clearly 15 years ago this would be nonexistent, but it’s how this audience communicates with each other, tells their stories and what they find engaging.”; Chase saw a 50 percent increase in p2p transactions in 2017 and a 15 percent increase in new enrollments for their app. Source.