Hello, FinTech community. Welcome to our FinTech Top Voice Interview Series.
The latest FinTech Interview with Arcady Lapiro, CEO, Agora is an interactive Q&A-styled conversation.
About Agora – Agora helps Banks & Credit Unions enhance their digital experience without replacing their core banking system. Agora’s modular banking technology accelerates digital journeys and implements cutting-edge Fintech products to boost deposits and revenues. Financial Institutions and Fintech can also launch standalone digital solutions using Agora’s challenger bank platform and advanced Fintech ecosystem.
Let’s start…
FinTech Insights (FTI): Hi Arcady, welcome to the FinTech Top Voice Interview Series. Please share your tech journey with us.
Arcady: My tech journey has been deeply intertwined with financial services and fintech. It all began in 2000 when I was part of the founding and management team of a group of companies, including a digital bank and one of the early pioneers of Bank as a Service (BaaS). After successfully selling this group to one of the world’s largest credit unions, I continued my fintech path as an advisor and board member for several fintech companies across the U.S., Canada, and Israel.
Eventually, I returned to the entrepreneurial space to launch Agora Financial Technologies, where we built a new core banking platform from the ground up. This platform, based on a microservices architecture, is designed to deliver Banking as a Service for fintech companies and provide embedded fintech solutions for community banks and credit unions.
FTI: How do you see AI impact how Finance Technology Solutions will evolve in the future?
Arcady: AI will be the engine driving innovation in fintech, enabling companies to deliver smarter, faster, and more specialized financial products while offering highly personalized customer experiences. Focusing specifically on our segment—Banking as a Service and Embedded Finance—AI will significantly accelerate growth in these areas. By automating decision-making processes and integrating AI-driven analytics into non-financial platforms, fintechs and community banks will be able to offer seamless, real-time financial products and services wherever and whenever customers need them.
FTI: The global AR, VR, and MR market is projected to grow significantly, reaching approximately $521.28 billion by 2031. What are your tech strategies?
Arcady: The rapid growth of AR, VR, and MR technologies presents an exciting opportunity for the financial sector, particularly in Banking as a Service and embedded fintech. We’re exploring two key strategies to leverage these technologies in the coming year:
- Seamless Integration of Embedded Finance: By integrating AI and AR, we can enhance real-time data visualization for users during financial transactions on partner platforms. This will provide a more interactive and engaging user experience, making financial decision-making smoother and more intuitive.
- Innovative Risk Management & Fraud Detection: AR/VR tools offer the potential to simulate risk management scenarios, allowing financial institutions to train their systems using real-world simulations. This is particularly valuable for fraud detection, as it helps identify and respond to suspicious activities more effectively in dynamic environments.
Fintech Insights: Fintech Top Voice: Interview with Tendü Yogurtçu, CTO at Precisely
FTI: Quote Top 3 reasons to have Real-Time Engagement Tools.
Arcady: Here are our top three reasons for implementing real-time engagement tools:
- Streamlined Communication and Decision-Making: Real-time engagement tools facilitate instant communication, enabling faster and more efficient decision-making across teams and with customers. This will reduce delays and ensures that issues will be addressed promptly.
- Improved Operational Efficiency: By automating customer interactions and providing instant access to information, real-time tools reduce the workload on support teams, helping organizations operate more efficiently and at scale.
- Enhanced Customer Experience & Satisfaction: Immediate, personalized interactions through live chat, AI-powered assistants, and real-time alerts enhance the customer experience, leading to higher satisfaction and improved loyalty.
FTI: How according to you should companies embrace fintech to transform their business more significantly?
Arcady: It’s not just about transforming their business; it’s about integrating banking and financial products effectively. For non-banking institutions looking to launch or add banking and financial products, adopting Banking-as-a-Service is essential for achieving speed and compliance. On the other hand, for banks and credit unions aiming to accelerate their digital transformation, embracing embedded fintech is crucial.
By layering innovative technology and features over their legacy systems, they can compete more effectively with leading competitors like JPMorgan, Chime, Apple, and Square. This approach allows them to enhance their offerings and provide a more modern, customer-centric experience.
Fintech Insights: Top 10 Accounting Automation Software Features
FTI: Why is data privacy much more important than compliance? What are your comments?
Arcady: Data privacy extends far beyond regulatory compliance; it is foundational to building trust, protecting customers, and ensuring long-term business sustainability. Companies must place data privacy at the core of their operations, establishing the right processes and architecture from day one to secure sensitive information.
At Agora, we have developed a microservices architecture and leveraged cloud technology because we believe this approach offers the best framework for robust data privacy. By prioritizing data security in our infrastructure, we are not only meeting compliance requirements but also fostering customer trust and loyalty.
FTI: If you had to share five thoughts on the future of fintech before we wrap up what would they be?
Arcady: The future of fintech is vibrant and full of potential! I encourage you to check out this report shared by the World Economic Forum and Cambridge University Press during the Davos Forum, where Agora was proud to contribute: Future of Fintech Report
Beyond that, fintech will evolve in several key directions:
- Fintech Will Drive Financial Inclusion: Mobile-based banking, micro-lending, and digital payment platforms will empower more individuals and small businesses to access financial services, fostering economic growth in emerging markets.
- Embedded Finance Will Become Ubiquitous: Financial services will increasingly be integrated into everyday non-financial products and platforms. From e-commerce sites offering instant financing options to ride-hailing apps that include insurance, embedded finance will make financial interactions seamless and enhance customer convenience, creating new revenue streams for businesses.
- AI and Machine Learning Will Enable Hyper-Personalization: AI and machine learning will transform customer experiences by delivering hyper-personalized financial products and services. Fintechs will leverage data to meet customer needs with unprecedented precision, leading to the flourishing of niche markets and specialized offerings.
- Collaboration Between Fintechs and Traditional Institutions Will Accelerate: Rather than competing, fintechs and traditional financial institutions will increasingly collaborate to deliver innovative solutions. Banks will leverage the agility and technology of fintechs, while fintechs will benefit from banks’ infrastructure and regulatory expertise. This synergy will result in better products, faster innovation, and a more robust financial ecosystem.
Fintech Insights: Impact of Fintech on Retail Banking Trends
