Banking Transformed with Jim Marous

Banking is no longer competing with the branch down the street. It is competing with every digital experience your customers have before they ever open your app. Expectations around speed, simplicity, and trust are being set by big tech, fintechs, and embedded finance, not by traditional financial institutions. And for many banks, that gap is growing. That is why today’s conversation matters. I am joined by Phil Tomlinson, Senior Vice President of Global Offerings at TaskUs, and Pragya Agarwal, Vice President of Financial Crimes and Risk Operations. They sit at the intersection of customer experience, advanced technology, and financial crime prevention, where speed and trust have to coexist every day. In this episode of Banking Transformed, we unpack what next-generation banking really looks like, where AI is delivering real value right now, and how banks can move faster, innovate responsibly, and still protect customers in an always-on, app-driven world. This episode of Banking Transformed is sponsored by TaskUs TaskUs is a leading provider of outsourced digital services and next-generation customer experience to the world’s most innovative companies, helping its clients represent, protect and grow their brands. Leveraging a cloud-based infrastructure, TaskUs serves clients in the fast-growing sectors, including social media, e-commerce, gaming, streaming media, food delivery and ride-sharing, technology, financial services and healthcare. https://www.taskus.com/services/financial-crime-compliance/

Nearly half of the skills banking leaders rely on today will be obsolete within five years. In this episode of Banking Transformed, Jim Marous explores why continuous learning has become the most critical leadership skill in financial services, and why failing to adapt is the fastest path to irrelevance. Jim shares the personal transformation that reshaped his career, explains how AI is accelerating the divide between learners and laggards, and outlines the daily habits leaders must embrace to stay relevant in a world where change will never be this slow again.

Banks love to claim they are high-tech and high-touch. The truth is, most are neither, and the gap between what institutions promise and what customers experience is widening fast. It is costing banks billions in lost trust, slower growth, and missed opportunities, especially as expectations accelerate across the rest of people’s financial lives. At Fintech NerdCon in Miami, I sat down with two leaders who are actually closing that gap. Siya Vansia, Chief Brand and Innovation Officer at ConnectOne Bank, and Suzan Chaffin, EVP of Solutions at LoanPro, are showing what modern banking looks like when technology, culture, and leadership come together with clarity and purpose. Our Banking Transformed conversation dives into the real work behind transformation. Not the marketing language, but the decisions, processes, and organizational alignment needed to deliver both speed and empathy. These leaders expose why retrofitting new technology onto old processes always fails, and how banks can rebuild for a future where high-tech and high-touch finally work together. If your institution is trying to modernize, improve experience, or break free from legacy constraints, this discussion offers a practical look at what it takes to move faster and deliver better value today.

What if the biggest myth in banking is that customers don’t need branches anymore? Because every time Bank of America opens a new financial center, digital sales in that market jump by 50 percent. Physical presence isn’t competing with digital — it’s accelerating it. Now, Bank of America is putting $750 million behind a bet the rest of the industry walked away from too soon, opening 150 new financial centers across 60 markets by 2027 at more than $5 million per location. Bold? Yes. Contradictory? Maybe. But the timing suggests something deeper: after shrinking from 6,000 branches to about 3,700, they now believe the future isn’t fewer branches… it’s smarter ones. These next-generation centers aren’t transaction factories. They’re advisory hubs staffed by 12,000 relationship bankers, designed to anchor communities and handle the conversations digital can’t — at least not yet. My guest on the Banking Transformed podcast, Will Smayda, leads this transformation. He’ll explain why Bank of America is expanding while others retreat and what these new financial centers reveal about how clients actually want to bank. So, here’s the question we all need to wrestle with: Is this the future of the branch — or the most expensive contradiction in banking?

Every bank today is trying to appear modern. But you can’t operate a digital institution with a core system that hasn’t been updated since the iPhone was introduced. After years of adding new features on top of outdated infrastructure, the limitations become clear: legacy cores slow innovation, hinder personalization, and make it nearly impossible to compete in an AI-driven world. Modernization is no longer just a tech project. It’s a strategic choice for whether a bank can stay competitive. Banks adopting unified, modern architectures aren’t doing it for appearances; they’re doing it because it provides the speed, flexibility, and resilience that legacy systems cannot match. The good news? Modernizing no longer requires years of planning and implementation. Progressive methods are giving banks safer, lower-risk options to move forward. Today on the Banking Transformed Podcast, I’m joined by Sai Rangachari, Chief Product Officer at Temenos, to explore what modern core banking really entails, why it’s important now, and how banks can update without disrupting their operations.

Nearly half of U.S. households are living paycheck to paycheck, yet millions of financially capable people are denied access to affordable credit. That is not a consumer failure. It is a system failure. I recently spoke at the Hope Global Forums in Atlanta, where the focus is on economic opportunity. I challenged the banking industry to address a blind spot. We rely on outdated credit models that look backward, not at real cash flow, real behavior, or real potential. When credit is denied, education alone does not work, mobility stalls, and banks lose the growth they say they want. Serving the underserved is no longer optional. It is the strategy gap holding this industry back.

The biggest threat to consumer financial health isn’t inflation, stagnant wages, or market volatility, but the financial system itself. Not because it’s failing, but because it’s been silently optimized to benefit the most educated, the wealthiest, and the most sophisticated players. In the new book Fixed, a harsh truth is revealed: from daily saving and borrowing to education loans, insurance, and retirement planning, personal finance is designed to disadvantage the very people it seeks to help. Complexity becomes a source of profit. Friction turns into a deliberate feature. And billions of people, from young families to aging retirees, are left making high-stakes decisions within a system stacked against them. Today on Banking Transformed, I’m joined by the co-author of the book, Tarun Ramadorai. We explore how we got here, why consumers struggle with even the most basic financial choices, and most importantly, what it will take to restore fairness, trust, and transparency. If you care about the future of consumer banking, financial well-being, or rebuilding confidence in the system, this is a conversation you can’t afford to miss.

The biggest competitive advantage in banking right now isn’t scale … it’s speed. According to PwC, GenAI is reshaping the balance of power across financial services, and the banks that move fastest will define the next era of growth. In fact, 58% of banking leaders believe generative and agentic AI will be the single most transformative force in the industry over the next three years, and 55% already consider it their top investment priority—more than any other sector in financial services. What’s truly disruptive is that AI is leveling the playing field. Smaller, more agile institutions now have access to the same intelligence, decision-making power, and client insights that once required massive scale. Speed—not size—is becoming the key differentiator. And this shift is pushing banks from asset-focused growth toward client-centered growth, where relevance, responsiveness, and rapid innovation drive real competitive advantage. Today, I’m joined on the Banking Transformed podcast by Sean Viergutz, Banking & Capital Markets Advisory Leader at PwC, to break down what this transformation means for leaders right now. We’ll explore how banks can redesign operating models, build new capacity for growth, and turn AI from a cost-saving tool into a true driver of client value.

Consumers don’t want more banking messages — they want relevance. And right now, most banks are wildly out of sync with what their communities actually need. Consumers want communication that reflects their neighborhood, life stage, and immediate financial needs — and broad, one-size-fits-all marketing isn’t effective. Hyperlocal strategies are emerging as some of the most powerful ways to drive acquisition, strengthen relationships, and capture market share. In this episode of Banking Transformed, I talk with Fred Cadena, Head of Client Strategy at Vericast, about how real-time data, household insights, and neighborhood-level trends are changing the way banks compete. Fred explains why “relevance beats reach,” how new mover and life-event signals drive growth, and what it takes to activate hyperlocal marketing without adding complexity. If your institution is seeking affordable, data-driven strategies to boost growth in 2025, this conversation provides a clear roadmap — and questions long-standing assumptions about how banks engage with their communities. This episode of Banking Transformed is sponsored by Vericast Vericast’s Hyperlocal Marketing solution is a fully managed, precision-engineered, data-driven approach to personalized digital advertising at the branch level enabling financial institutions to build stronger community connections, increase engagement and conversions, and optimize advertising spend for maximum impact. Vericast.com

In this video, Jim Marous broadcasts from Miami’s Wynwood Arts District — one of the most vibrant creative hubs in the world. Using the evolution of Wynwood as a backdrop, Jim explores why so many financial institutions struggle to differentiate, why creativity has become a strategic imperative, and how banks can learn from brands and artists unafraid to take bold, distinctive stands. From the history of Wynwood’s transformation to the sameness of today’s mobile banking experiences, Jim breaks down the hidden cost of playing it safe and what it will take for banks and credit unions to stand out in a crowded, commoditized marketplace. If you want your organization to compete on something other than price, convenience, or compliance, this episode is a wake-up call — and a path forward.

Today on Banking Transformed, I sit down with someone who never holds back – Kevin O’Leary from Shark Tank. We recorded this conversation live at the Catalyst Strategic Summit in Austin, where Kevin and I explored one of the biggest questions facing the industry today: What is the real future of retail banking—and where do smaller financial institutions still have a competitive edge? Kevin shares his unfiltered views on consolidation, regulation, innovation, leadership, and why he believes niche banks and credit unions may actually be better positioned than the giants if they’re willing to move faster, specialize, and rethink what value really means for customers.

The secret to breakthrough innovation isn't having more resources. It's all about learning faster. SpaceX went from near-bankruptcy to reshaping a $400 billion industry by compressing learning loops from years to weeks. This isn't just a space story. It's a blueprint for any regulated industry. If you change the speed of learning, you'll change the slope of performance. In this video, I share four lessons and one 90-day framework to compress your innovation cycles from months to weeks. Only 11% of banks have successfully scaled digital innovation, and 70% of executives expect non-traditional players to dominate by 2030. The winners won't be the largest institutions. They'll be those who disrupt themselves first. The question is whether your institution is ready?

In this episode of Banking Transformed, Jim Marous exposes why digital transformation in banking is still more myth than reality. Despite massive investment and ambitious strategies, only 7% of banks achieve their intended digital outcomes. Drawing on insights from the 2025 Retail Banking Trends and Priorities Report sponsored by Q2, Jim explores the leadership blind spots, cultural barriers, and misplaced priorities that are undermining progress across the industry. He reveals how institutions are chasing digital experiences while ignoring the crumbling core systems beneath them — and why leadership, not technology, remains the ultimate obstacle to change. Listeners will learn why most digital initiatives fail, how legacy systems cripple innovation, and why true AI success depends on human intelligence rather than automation.

Fraud is no longer just a downstream cleanup issue. It’s a direct result of cyber incidents that outpace our organizational structures. Siloed teams still overlook weak signals, coordinated attacks manage to get through, and losses grow across different channels. That’s why banking leaders need a new strategy: one that treats fraud and cybersecurity as a unified defense, sharing intelligence, standard procedures, and real-time decision-making. In this episode of Banking Transformed, we’ll explain how cyber-enabled fraud actually occurs, why traditional structures don’t work, and what it takes to stay ahead. We’ll also explore the GenAI factor, looking at how attackers are scaling deception and how banks can respond with smarter profiling and faster, smoother decision-making. Joining me is Laura Quevedo, Executive Vice President, Fraud & Decisioning Solutions at Mastercard, a leader at the center of payment resiliency, financial crime prevention, and risk decisioning. She will share how integrated teams and shared intelligence are changing outcomes for institutions worldwide. For banking leaders tasked with protecting their institutions and customers in this new era of converged threats, this conversation offers a practical roadmap for building truly resilient defenses. Because the question is no longer whether your fraud and cyber teams should work together, but how quickly you can make it happen.

Today, I’m excited to welcome Colton Pond and Simon Taylor, the visionary co-founders of Fintech NerdCon to the Banking Transformed podcast. Fintech NerdCon is an event with no meetings, no sales booths … just top-tier networking with fintech operators and builders. It’s what happens when a fintech passion, Comic-Con energy, and genuine community building come together. In this conversation, we’ll explore why they believe the fintech conference circuit needs disruption, how they’re creating a different kind of community experience, and what banks, fintechs, and ecosystem builders should focus on to succeed in the industry’s next phase. In addition, they provide an inside look into what will make this event different from any the banking industry has ever experienced.

Today, we're exploring one of banking's most vital yet often overlooked functions: corporate banking account analysis. Though it might not seem glamorous, this is where billions of dollars in revenue are gained or lost, and where the gap between a loyal corporate client and a frustrated one is often decided. Joining us on the Banking Transformed podcast is Dan Gill, Industry Analyst at Zafin, an AI-powered banking platform that's revolutionizing how banks handle pricing, billing, and customer relationships. In a time when corporate clients demand transparency and banks face challenges with legacy systems and scattered data, the account analysis function has become a key strategic area. We'll explore how modern AI and unified data platforms are addressing long-standing issues, including revenue loss, manual fee calculations, and unclear reporting that frustrates CFOs. Whether you're in banking, fintech, or simply interested in how corporate finance operates behind the scenes, this conversation will reveal the significant transformation underway in this field. This episode of Banking Transformed is sponsored by Zafin Zafin's Loyalty Rewards capability helps banks deepen customer engagement by rewarding behaviors across the entire banking journey, not just their transactions and spends. It offers behavior-based incentives, flexible point strategies, and personalized rewards, moving beyond traditional spend-based models. With seamless integration and real-time analytics, banks can optimize loyalty programs to enhance customer lifetime value and drive sustainable growth. Visit https://zafin.com/insights/banking-blueprints/?videos

Financial institutions are overwhelmed with customer data but lack meaningful insights. Banks and credit unions find it difficult to accurately identify their customers across scattered digital channels, monitor customer behavior from the initial contact to conversion, and demonstrate which marketing efforts truly produce results … all while complying with strict data privacy laws. Today on the Banking Transformed podcast, we're tackling these issues with Harmon Lyons, Vice President of Strategy and Market Development at TransUnion. We'll discuss full-funnel marketing strategies for financial services that blend brand awareness with acquisition tactics, achieving up to 40% improvements in identity completion. This allows banks and credit unions to finally demonstrate ROI and link marketing efforts directly to conversions. If you're a financial services marketer facing customer data fragmentation, attribution challenges, or privacy compliance concerns, this episode offers actionable strategies for enhancing campaign performance in 2025. This episode of Banking Transformed is sponsored by TransUnion TransUnion brings clarity to marketing chaos by delivering a 360-degree view of your customer, helping you deepen your insights, accelerate your decision making, and better measure the impact of every marketing dollar. For more information: Bring Clarity to Chaos | TransUnion

Instant payments have officially entered the mainstream — but adoption is still uneven, and questions remain. How is FedNow performing more than a year after launch? What’s driving momentum, what’s holding institutions back, and what will it take for real-time payments to finally reach critical mass? In this episode of Banking Transformed, I’m joined by Bernadette Ksepka, Senior Vice President and Deputy Head of Product Development for the Federal Reserve’s FedNow Service. We’ll explore how instant payments are reshaping financial interactions, debunk some of the biggest myths surrounding FedNow, and examine how financial institutions — from community banks to major players — can leverage this infrastructure for competitive advantage. From new use cases and fraud prevention to the economics of real-time liquidity, this conversation offers a clear-eyed look at where the U.S. instant payments ecosystem stands today — and where it’s heading next. If your institution hasn’t yet activated “send,” this episode might just change your mind. This episode of Banking Transformed is sponsored by FedNow The FedNow Service is an instant payment infrastructure developed by the Federal Reserve that allows eligible financial institutions to provide 24x7x365 instant payment services to stay competitive and meet customer demand. The network currently has about 1,500 participating financial institutions headquartered in all 50 states. For more information visit https://explore.fednow.org/

Against the backdrop of the iconic Bonneville Salt Flats, where speed records are broken and boundaries are pushed, Colton Pond joined me to interview three visionary banking leaders who are breaking through the traditional limitations of legacy core banking systems. This unique setting perfectly mirrors the conversation's theme: the need for financial institutions to accelerate their modernization journey and adopt a modular approach to the future. In this compelling episode of Banking Transformed, Kelli Keough from SoFi, Chris Black from Thread Bank, and Raphael Reznek from Mascoma Bank share their real-world experiences transitioning from monolithic legacy systems to specialized, modular architectures. They reveal why treating deposits, lending, and wealth management as distinct domains isn't just a technical decision ... it's a competitive imperative that can make product launches 40% more efficient. Whether you're a banking executive navigating modernization challenges, a fintech professional exploring infrastructure options, or simply curious about the future of financial services, this conversation offers practical insights from leaders who've successfully transitioned from legacy to modern, API-first platforms.

What if your business banking clients could ask a question, in plain English, and get an instant, intelligent answer? No spreadsheets. No manual reports. Just the client, their data, and AI working together. It sounds like science fiction, but it's happening right now. Grasshopper Bank has become the first U.S. bank to enable customers to connect their business banking data directly to Anthropic's Claude AI assistant, and the implications are staggering. We're joined on the Banking Transformed podcast by two visionaries who made it happen: Chris Tremont, Chief Digital Officer, and Pete Chapman, CTO of Grasshopper Bank. They'll reveal how they built a secure bridge between banking and artificial intelligence, why they raced to be first, and what this means for every banking organization in America. This is the conversation where the future of banking gets written. The companies that understand this shift will thrive. Those who don't will be left behind.