Though the technology world has always been competitive, partnerships and collaborations have always been important in the fintech sector to be able to innovate new solutions in a constantly changing ecosystem.
One person who knows about this is Myles Bertrand, Managing Director, APAC, for Mambu, a cloud banking platform. Myles has over 20 years’ experience in software solutions, with his key strengths in payments and transactional banking. He has worked across several industries, including banking, wealth, telecommunications retail and insurance, and has been at Mambu since 2018.
Mambu has recently entered into a partnership with Ranqx, an SME loan origination and credit underwriting platform, with the aim of improving the efficiency of loan applications for SMEs and accelerate the flow of funds to customers. Here, Myles discusses the benefits of this partnership and the importance of collaboration in the fintech world.
The world of technology has always been fiercely competitive, with rival tech firms often competing in similar product spaces or for the same customer pool. However, new players in the world of fintech are shaking up this old-school model, and achieving success thanks to clever collaboration and strategic partnerships – working together to meet common goals rather than fighting for the same piece of (customer) pie.
A great example of an effective fintech partnership in action is the recent collaboration between global SaaS cloud banking platform Mambu, and NZ-based digital lending platform Ranqx. Mambu and Ranqx formed a partnership with the aim of improving the efficiency of SME loan applications for SME banks and lenders, reducing the time and cost associated with manual loan processing, and accelerating the flow of funds to end-users.
When asked why Ranqx entered into a partnership with Mambu, CEO Dave Lewis explains, “Ranqx and Mambu share great synergy in that we’re both offering cloud-native and API first solutions in the financial services space, and we’re also both looking at ways to assist a similar customer base. And the tech solutions we offer are different but complementary. Coming together in this partnership allows us to accelerate the digital SME lending innovation that banks and lenders are seeking globally, and allows us both to scale at pace.”
Ben Goldin, CTO/CPO at Mambu, adds, “Ranqx’s innovative digital lending platform removes the manual processes inherent with traditional loan applications for small and medium-sized enterprises, resulting in cost savings of up to 80 per cent and allowing SME banks and lenders to assess and approve loan applications within five minutes, in a fully digital customer experience. This is the kind of innovative tech that Mambu loves to partner with and we look forward to working together to help our mutual customers.”
With a reputation for being fast-moving and agile, fintechs have an inherent ability to innovate and respond to change rapidly, something that larger, more established companies – be they banks or more traditional-style technology companies – can only dream of.
High-performing fintechs like Mambu and Ranqx are able to leverage their agility, pivot when and as required, and work with their customers to build digital banking solutions within weeks, rather than months or years. In a partnership like this, each organisation brings their own particular expertise to the relationship – there’s no need to reinvent the wheel and develop new products or capabilities when your fintech partner already brings these to the party. At Mambu we see building strategic partnerships with innovative and best-in-class fintechs like Ranqx as a no-brainer.
“Partnerships play a key role in our business strategy and we actively seek out synergistic relationships. Being able to seamlessly partner with adjacent technology means that innovation, speed of deployment and cost savings can be delivered to banks and lenders at scale,” adds Lewis
Of course, partnerships and collaboration are not the exclusive domain of fintechs, with many banks and financial institutions – particularly challenger banks and neobanks – working to cultivate a trusted network of partners in the fintech ecosystem as they develop new products and services. These challengers operate like fintechs rather than traditional banks, leveraging technology like APIs, and running lean and nimble operations.
Partnerships are incredibly valuable in the fintech space and will continue to drive innovation in the sector.
