Why future-proofing fintech begins with trust

Financial services have always been shaped by waves of innovation. From double-entry bookkeeping, centralized banking, checks, national fiat currencies and credit cards to the rise of computers, ATMs, algorithms and digital platforms, each wave has redrawn the boundaries of what’s possible within the sector. Each has brought new ways of transacting, new tools for managing and storing value, and new modes of exchange. Innovation has never stood still, and the sector has risen and adapted to each swell.

But if innovation moves like the tide (persistent, unpredictable, and at times overwhelming!), then trust is the reef beneath it. Constant, structural and essential, trust gives the system shape. It’s what allows markets to function, firms to grow and consumers to take part with confidence. Yet when we focus only on the waves, we risk taking that foundation for granted. If trust erodes, the consequences are fast-moving, far-reaching and lasting.