The digital finance revolution: unleashing the power of inclusion, growth, sustainability & security

Executive Summary

This report demonstrates why a successful digital finance ecosystem is a must-have if we want a more inclusive, green, prosperous and secure Europe. Take the example of cloud computing, which can lead to a 10% reduction in fraudulent financial activities.

Consumer demand for digital financial services is driving significant disruption in the industry and financial actors are answering the call. They are introducing new products and services more quickly and with a richer user experience, all while continuing to reduce costs and maintaining a high-level of security. Today, the EU must actively recognise and incorporate the potential of digitalisation into its policies for the financial sector, to allow for its continued innovation in an efficient way.

There is no time to lose

The digital transformation of financial services will deliver five core benefits for society in the EU. This report points to areas of action that we advise the EU to take on board, that will allow the transformation of the sector to be accelerated, rather than stifled, ultimately benefitting society as a whole.

5 Societal Benefits & Their Action Areas: 

1. Enhanced security and resilience                                                                  by developing the EU’s digital capabilities whilst maintaining open markets;

2. Growth and competitiveness                                                                           by prioritising regulatory sandboxes over prescriptive regulatory requirements, and by incorporating global standards;

3. Data-driven sustainability gains                                                                  by speeding up data sharing through contracts via encouraging standardised data formats across sectors;

4. Improved customer experience                                                                        by making public data sets available to the financial ecosystem to drive better AI inferences;

5. Societal inclusivity                                                                                                   by accelerating the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility to improve citizens’ financial literacy.