The brilliant basics of modern lending | FinTrends

Description

What does it really take to be a modern lender in 2026? In this episode, James Powell, Head of Lending, Global Accounts and Market Development at SBS, shares a clear-eyed view on why lenders are becoming technology companies, why focus matters more than ever, and where real value is created across the lending journey. From AI and SaaS to customer experience and trust, this conversation cuts through the noise to what truly drives progress.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Transcription

Speaker #0
Welcome everyone. As we step into 2026, lenders are dealing with unpredictable rate cycles, tighter risks, appetites, rising regulatory expectations for explainability, and customers who want faster, simpler credit journeys. At the same time, AI is moving from pilots to production, and SaaS operating models are reshaping how platforms are delivered and scaled. So to help us make sense of what truly matters now and what will matter next, I am joined by James Powell, Chief SaaS Transformation Officer and Head of Specialized Finance Strategy at SBS. So James, thank you for being with us.
Speaker #1
Thank you. Welcome.
Speaker #0
In plain terms, What should a modern lender's guiding vision be?
Speaker #1
That's a good question, Caroline. I think when I listen to your introduction, all those things we love as a software company, because change, massive change and transformation, means we can help our customers to transform. What are they thinking about? All of the lenders that we talk about across the whole sphere are going through some kind of transformation. Some of them, my favorite is automotive. I'm an automotive guy. Huge transformation around electric vehicles, changing models, technological advancement, changing bio habits. But you can apply that principle across pretty much every aspect of lending. And you mentioned some of the technologies just now. These companies are now technology companies. The part that we play is that we bring competence that perhaps they don't have, they don't want to build in their business because they want to lend. So what the really... The really sensible ones are doing is they are leveraging that technology. They're leveraging partnerships with people like SBS, and they're building their whole business around technology. Now, obviously, you can't talk about technology without talking about AI. Very interesting at the moment with AI because lots of cases where people are spending money and not getting the value back, but we know that wave will continue, and that will be core to it. You also mentioned SaaS just now, modern systems being able to have. quick time to market for your systems, low cost of ownership to ensure that the business is profitable and really focus on the customer journey. Everybody's talking about the customer journey. We value our customers, our customers value their customers and we help them to serve their customers in a digital and customer satisfaction driving way, if there's such a term.
Speaker #0
Can you explain to me why focusing on a few priority segments? be more effective than trying to serve every possible market?
Speaker #1
That is a fantastic question. And I love it because I think the temptation always is we can build some software that will do everything everywhere. So we will look, because we are already involved in most areas of lending. But the challenge for a software company like us is to leverage your strengths, go where the customers get the most value, where there's transformation happening, but don't try to do everything. everywhere. So I call it the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail is a system that does front to back office, every type of lending all over the planet. It's the Holy Grail for a reason. People can't achieve it. So for us, we are focusing on areas where we have great strengths, and there are many of them. I think mortgages in the UK, think tier one banks in France and beyond in France across multiple different lending types, think MEA, think automotive finance globally, think the US, which is where a lot of our growth is going to be we will be focusing on those areas and specifically looking at individual segments within lending and i'll give you some examples um uh sme lending um retail lending t2 to t4 in in france and also um corporate lending in france where we have a lot of strength in our lending operations and there's a great opportunity in the market so our great cco ralph many. always talks about focus, And I think really, when I look at the next three to five years in the lending strategy, it's about focus on those strengths and building innovative solutions to drive customer value.
Speaker #0
So when people say lending must create value for customer and for the business, what practical outcomes should lenders track today?
Speaker #1
Well, obviously, they want to grow their portfolios. They want to serve their customers. We... What we're looking for when we look for the focus that I just talked about just now is white space. So our customers are looking for places where they can grow. We're looking for places where we can grow into there and deliver value. So the outcomes they're looking for, as I mentioned just now, is really about efficiency, cost reduction, but most importantly, the customer journey, satisfying their customers. And again, I think of lending, it's no different to core banking in essence in terms of the types of systems that we provide. We provide things that are time to market, TCO, drive efficiency, allow banks and lenders to manage their... credit risk in a much better way. Lending for me is, there's two things that drive our thinking around lending. One is it's super complex and with complexity comes difficulty, but also if you get it right, it comes value. And also lending for our customers is the area where one of the key areas where they make money. So it's high value.
Speaker #0
You were talking about difficulties. How do they know they're making real progress.
Speaker #1
That's a good question. It all comes down to money at the end of the day. They're making good progress when they have happy customers and they make money. But I think also, you know, I always look at the model of adoption within systems and so on. And you look at pioneers all the way through to laggards. And I think lenders need to look at themselves and see where they are on that scope, on that spectrum, and judge their progress by how they are. advancing technology because as I said just now they're becoming technology businesses so I think that's another key indicator the obvious ones are money and customer satisfaction.
Speaker #0
Across the lending life cycle from first inquiry to servicing and collections where do you see the most common friction points?
Speaker #1
I mean I think we've come from a back office servicing place that's where we've made our success that's where we've helped our customers the most I think the major point of friction. actually is the intersection between the front office and the back office. And I think, you know, to a certain extent, people want end-to-end systems. The reality of that is that actually they have to go and get a front office digital engagement platform that allows them to build different solutions at the front end to manage the customer journey and to allow the customers to self-serve. But that friction point, if you don't get that right, that interaction between front and back office system, recognising that it's off to maybe a different vendor, but certainly a different system, that's a real point of issue. And what that turns into from a business outcome perspective is your ability to onboard customers and to be able to originate loans. It needs to be done fast. That's what people expect nowadays. And they want a single customer journey as well. We've had examples with our customers telling us that they have multiple lending portfolios. with different customer journeys that could be serving the same customer. So if you're in a situation where you have one customer and he has three different experiences, depending on what product he's buying from you, that's massive friction. And that's where we're looking at, one of the areas we're looking to help improve things.
Speaker #0
So do you have an example of simple steps to reduce the frictions?
Speaker #1
Well, yes, I think so. Because you think about our DBS platform, which is about engagement with... the customer's customer. If you can have a single platform that runs... I'll give you an example where a customer of ours has three different commercial portfolios. At the moment, they have three different journeys, which means the customer is not happy or it has a bad experience. If we bring DBS in and we can onboard that customer in a very consistent way across those three different lending products, and then once they... The customer is onboarded, so we do that with the AML and the KYC. We get them onboarded and we can also have a single process that allows them to originate a lease, floor plan loan or a specialist loan, recognising obviously the differences between those financial products. Then that's liquid gold to the customers.
Speaker #0
If a lender wants to move faster while staying resilient, what qualities should they look for in technology and business partners?
Speaker #1
Well, first of all, the business partner needs to know their business. I think someone at this conference early on, I think it was Hurt, said, we're not a software provider. Well, we are, obviously. But what we bring is that combination, it's that intersection between technology and business. We bring the business expertise. So the first thing that they need to be doing if they want to be moving fast is working with someone who understands their business. It can translate that understanding into a solution for them. So that's the first thing, but also a company that has the right technology tools and software to be delivered in the right manner. I'm talking SaaS again, so that you can do it quickly and efficiently and at low cost.
Speaker #0
So what are the early steps that usually show quick results?
Speaker #1
Okay, so the first thing that I think a lender needs to do or any financial services organization is they need to be thinking about their strategy in order to determine what they're going to do in the short term, whether it be to do with software or to do any other business practice process. So thinking about the long-term strategy, thinking about their vision, their positioning in the marketplace, it's the same thing as we do when we think about our customers. Think about your strategy and then you come all the way back down to making the decisions, the operational decisions that are going to drive your future growth.
Speaker #0
That's for the quick results, the early steps. What about the long-term actions?
Speaker #1
Well, once you've made those quick decisions or those short-term decisions, it's about commitment to it. It's about committing to your strategy and making the right decisions to move forward. And again, we always hope that they're going to be making the right decisions by... by working with us. And I think, you know, it's been talked about so much at this conference, the word trust, trusted partner, trusted advisor, that's the heart of the position that we want to achieve with our customers. And I think we're really far on that journey already with the way that we provide reliable, secure, safe systems for them. We're their livelihood. One of my favorite customers, Andrew Kilheaney from NatWest was talking on our panel. just a couple of days ago. And he calls it the brilliant basics. And everybody underestimates that. It's not the sexy, fancy stuff that you put on your website, but it should be because it's how we serve our customers. We keep them safe to allow them to keep their own customers safe.
Speaker #0
Thank you for your insights, James.
Speaker #1
Thank you, Caroline. Always a pleasure.

Description

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Transcription

Speaker #0
Welcome everyone. As we step into 2026, lenders are dealing with unpredictable rate cycles, tighter risks, appetites, rising regulatory expectations for explainability, and customers who want faster, simpler credit journeys. At the same time, AI is moving from pilots to production, and SaaS operating models are reshaping how platforms are delivered and scaled. So to help us make sense of what truly matters now and what will matter next, I am joined by James Powell, Chief SaaS Transformation Officer and Head of Specialized Finance Strategy at SBS. So James, thank you for being with us.
Speaker #1
Thank you. Welcome.
Speaker #0
In plain terms, What should a modern lender's guiding vision be?
Speaker #1
That's a good question, Caroline. I think when I listen to your introduction, all those things we love as a software company, because change, massive change and transformation, means we can help our customers to transform. What are they thinking about? All of the lenders that we talk about across the whole sphere are going through some kind of transformation. Some of them, my favorite is automotive. I'm an automotive guy. Huge transformation around electric vehicles, changing models, technological advancement, changing bio habits. But you can apply that principle across pretty much every aspect of lending. And you mentioned some of the technologies just now. These companies are now technology companies. The part that we play is that we bring competence that perhaps they don't have, they don't want to build in their business because they want to lend. So what the really... The really sensible ones are doing is they are leveraging that technology. They're leveraging partnerships with people like SBS, and they're building their whole business around technology. Now, obviously, you can't talk about technology without talking about AI. Very interesting at the moment with AI because lots of cases where people are spending money and not getting the value back, but we know that wave will continue, and that will be core to it. You also mentioned SaaS just now, modern systems being able to have. quick time to market for your systems, low cost of ownership to ensure that the business is profitable and really focus on the customer journey. Everybody's talking about the customer journey. We value our customers, our customers value their customers and we help them to serve their customers in a digital and customer satisfaction driving way, if there's such a term.
Speaker #0
Can you explain to me why focusing on a few priority segments? be more effective than trying to serve every possible market?
Speaker #1
That is a fantastic question. And I love it because I think the temptation always is we can build some software that will do everything everywhere. So we will look, because we are already involved in most areas of lending. But the challenge for a software company like us is to leverage your strengths, go where the customers get the most value, where there's transformation happening, but don't try to do everything. everywhere. So I call it the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail is a system that does front to back office, every type of lending all over the planet. It's the Holy Grail for a reason. People can't achieve it. So for us, we are focusing on areas where we have great strengths, and there are many of them. I think mortgages in the UK, think tier one banks in France and beyond in France across multiple different lending types, think MEA, think automotive finance globally, think the US, which is where a lot of our growth is going to be we will be focusing on those areas and specifically looking at individual segments within lending and i'll give you some examples um uh sme lending um retail lending t2 to t4 in in france and also um corporate lending in france where we have a lot of strength in our lending operations and there's a great opportunity in the market so our great cco ralph many. always talks about focus, And I think really, when I look at the next three to five years in the lending strategy, it's about focus on those strengths and building innovative solutions to drive customer value.
Speaker #0
So when people say lending must create value for customer and for the business, what practical outcomes should lenders track today?
Speaker #1
Well, obviously, they want to grow their portfolios. They want to serve their customers. We... What we're looking for when we look for the focus that I just talked about just now is white space. So our customers are looking for places where they can grow. We're looking for places where we can grow into there and deliver value. So the outcomes they're looking for, as I mentioned just now, is really about efficiency, cost reduction, but most importantly, the customer journey, satisfying their customers. And again, I think of lending, it's no different to core banking in essence in terms of the types of systems that we provide. We provide things that are time to market, TCO, drive efficiency, allow banks and lenders to manage their... credit risk in a much better way. Lending for me is, there's two things that drive our thinking around lending. One is it's super complex and with complexity comes difficulty, but also if you get it right, it comes value. And also lending for our customers is the area where one of the key areas where they make money. So it's high value.
Speaker #0
You were talking about difficulties. How do they know they're making real progress.
Speaker #1
That's a good question. It all comes down to money at the end of the day. They're making good progress when they have happy customers and they make money. But I think also, you know, I always look at the model of adoption within systems and so on. And you look at pioneers all the way through to laggards. And I think lenders need to look at themselves and see where they are on that scope, on that spectrum, and judge their progress by how they are. advancing technology because as I said just now they're becoming technology businesses so I think that's another key indicator the obvious ones are money and customer satisfaction.
Speaker #0
Across the lending life cycle from first inquiry to servicing and collections where do you see the most common friction points?
Speaker #1
I mean I think we've come from a back office servicing place that's where we've made our success that's where we've helped our customers the most I think the major point of friction. actually is the intersection between the front office and the back office. And I think, you know, to a certain extent, people want end-to-end systems. The reality of that is that actually they have to go and get a front office digital engagement platform that allows them to build different solutions at the front end to manage the customer journey and to allow the customers to self-serve. But that friction point, if you don't get that right, that interaction between front and back office system, recognising that it's off to maybe a different vendor, but certainly a different system, that's a real point of issue. And what that turns into from a business outcome perspective is your ability to onboard customers and to be able to originate loans. It needs to be done fast. That's what people expect nowadays. And they want a single customer journey as well. We've had examples with our customers telling us that they have multiple lending portfolios. with different customer journeys that could be serving the same customer. So if you're in a situation where you have one customer and he has three different experiences, depending on what product he's buying from you, that's massive friction. And that's where we're looking at, one of the areas we're looking to help improve things.
Speaker #0
So do you have an example of simple steps to reduce the frictions?
Speaker #1
Well, yes, I think so. Because you think about our DBS platform, which is about engagement with... the customer's customer. If you can have a single platform that runs... I'll give you an example where a customer of ours has three different commercial portfolios. At the moment, they have three different journeys, which means the customer is not happy or it has a bad experience. If we bring DBS in and we can onboard that customer in a very consistent way across those three different lending products, and then once they... The customer is onboarded, so we do that with the AML and the KYC. We get them onboarded and we can also have a single process that allows them to originate a lease, floor plan loan or a specialist loan, recognising obviously the differences between those financial products. Then that's liquid gold to the customers.
Speaker #0
If a lender wants to move faster while staying resilient, what qualities should they look for in technology and business partners?
Speaker #1
Well, first of all, the business partner needs to know their business. I think someone at this conference early on, I think it was Hurt, said, we're not a software provider. Well, we are, obviously. But what we bring is that combination, it's that intersection between technology and business. We bring the business expertise. So the first thing that they need to be doing if they want to be moving fast is working with someone who understands their business. It can translate that understanding into a solution for them. So that's the first thing, but also a company that has the right technology tools and software to be delivered in the right manner. I'm talking SaaS again, so that you can do it quickly and efficiently and at low cost.
Speaker #0
So what are the early steps that usually show quick results?
Speaker #1
Okay, so the first thing that I think a lender needs to do or any financial services organization is they need to be thinking about their strategy in order to determine what they're going to do in the short term, whether it be to do with software or to do any other business practice process. So thinking about the long-term strategy, thinking about their vision, their positioning in the marketplace, it's the same thing as we do when we think about our customers. Think about your strategy and then you come all the way back down to making the decisions, the operational decisions that are going to drive your future growth.
Speaker #0
That's for the quick results, the early steps. What about the long-term actions?
Speaker #1
Well, once you've made those quick decisions or those short-term decisions, it's about commitment to it. It's about committing to your strategy and making the right decisions to move forward. And again, we always hope that they're going to be making the right decisions by... by working with us. And I think, you know, it's been talked about so much at this conference, the word trust, trusted partner, trusted advisor, that's the heart of the position that we want to achieve with our customers. And I think we're really far on that journey already with the way that we provide reliable, secure, safe systems for them. We're their livelihood. One of my favorite customers, Andrew Kilheaney from NatWest was talking on our panel. just a couple of days ago. And he calls it the brilliant basics. And everybody underestimates that. It's not the sexy, fancy stuff that you put on your website, but it should be because it's how we serve our customers. We keep them safe to allow them to keep their own customers safe.
Speaker #0
Thank you for your insights, James.
Speaker #1
Thank you, Caroline. Always a pleasure.

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