Fintechs, Koch clash over branding

Personal finance brand-cum-TV commentator David Koch had some advice for today’s fintech leaders. They didn’t all agree with it.

Koch, who launched Money Magazine, moderated a panel of seven speakers at a fintech event on Tuesday in Sydney. There, he commented that a big problem the financial technology industry is facing right now is that the consumer does not see another human being they can trust.

“I’m not suggesting the Gerry Harvey or the John Symond model,” Koch continued, “but none of you put yourself up in the market [as if to say to clients that] there is a living human being looking after your interests in running the platform. And I’m intrigued by that. Why?”

The panel – assembled to mark the launch of a new register for robo-advice providers by Adviser Ratings, where Koch is a shareholder – bristled at the suggestion they weren’t doing enough personally to break down barriers and create trust for the new generation of advice technology companies.

“Did it work for AMP to do that?” replied Paul Feeney, founder of consumer website Map My Plan.

Koch argued that people’s disenchantment with the big five institutions – “you are just a logo, a brand” – will extend to fintech providers if their leaders don’t make themselves more publicly visible.

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Source: Fintechs, Koch clash over branding | Professional Planner