The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) has launched its inaugural mentorship initiative, the ‘Inspiring Future Female Leaders Programme’, aiming to develop the next generation of female finance leaders in the Middle East.

The new Future Female Leaders Programme will pair prominent women in the finance sector with aspiring members and students, to encourage them to share their experiences and insights – ultimately aiming to direct more women into leadership roles.

ICAEW’s programme hopes to enhance aspiring members’ leadership skills, expand their professional network, and improve their business decision-making skills through confidential group discussions and workshops. Sessions will address challenges for women in the industry, including building a career, leadership, taking risks, resilience, personal branding, work/ life balance, and the role of sponsors, coaches and mentors.

The Middle East region grapples with gender equality, with the largest gap to close standing at 62.6 per cent, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2023 Global Gender Gap Report.

Globally, women hold just 23 per cent of c-suite level positions in finance, contrasting with 49 per cent representation in entry-level positions.

Increasing the number of female finance leaders is also beneficial for business and the economy alike. A number of studies highlight how a higher proportion share of women, particularly in senior positions, boosts innovation, resilience, and financial performance. It also contributes to greater economic empowerment for women by providing opportunities for career advancement, financial independence, and closing gender gaps in income and wealth.

Creating an ‘ecosystem where women can empower each other to thrive’

Amanda Line, non-executive director at Vestey Holdings, Sana Khater, executive director of finance at ALDAR, as well as Jaimi Raikundalia, partner at Deloitte, are three of the mentors confirmed for the programme’s first cohort.

Amanda Line commented: “By offering a platform for seasoned female finance leaders to share their experiences and insights to emerging professionals, ICAEW is helping to create a supportive ecosystem where women can empower each other to thrive. It’s through women supporting women in finance that we will move closer to bridging the gender gap within our industry.”

Sana Khater also shared her enthusiasm for the initiative: “It’s imperative to encourage and enable young women to enter the finance sector with the right toolkit and skillset to thrive in an ever-growing complex, cross-border, and multidisciplinary business landscape where they can confidently add perspective, participate in financial decision making, and lead teams and organisations. ICAEW’s programme is a grassroots initiative focused on fostering the female finance leaders of tomorrow.”

Jaimi Raikundalia also said: “The evidence is clear: gender-diverse workforces correlate with more profitable companies. Despite increased awareness among corporate and government leaders for diversity as a driver of economic growth, women remain underrepresented in financial sectors.

“Our research shows that in companies where the CEOs were women, the percentages of women on boards and in senior management were double that of peer companies. That’s why women-led initiatives, like ICAEW’s programme, are essential for driving change at a grassroots level.”

ICAEW’s first Inspiring Future Leaders programme will run from 24 April to 24 July, with limited capacity. Interested members and students can apply via the ICAEW website, with applications closing on 22 April 2024.

Difficult economic conditions continue to hit non-bank lenders hard, as 79 per cent report that the economy has had a negative impact on their operations; according to a new report by business data API provider Codat.

A Codat study of 115 business lenders in the US and UK found that digital lenders are also seeing a rise in default rates (41 per cent), and, as a result, are tightening lending standards to manage risk.

Amidst these conditions, growth has become increasingly difficult for lenders,  with reduced customer demand (22 per cent) cited as the biggest barrier, followed by: competition from established players (19 per cent); the inability to raise additional funds (19 per cent); and a lack of product-market fit (19 per cent).

Despite economic difficulties, Codat also reveals that business lenders continue to innovate and evolve their offerings. Providers are adapting their strategies and priorities to narrow in focus on operational efficiency, retaining current customers and launching new lending products.

In fact, one in five lenders are actually planning to expand to new geographies, 17 per cent plan to expand their teams in the next year, and 40 per cent say their business has grown over the last 12 months, according to the Codat report.

Sixty-four per cent of the non-bank lenders surveyed say efficiency is a top priority. In order to achieve this, most lenders are focusing on improving customer retention, reducing business costs and lowering defaults. Meanwhile, 36 per cent of UK respondents are looking to reduce default rates by making better use of data. In the US, 34 per cent plan to do the same, as well as improve internal processes in order to reduce underwriting and loan serving costs.

Differentiation enables lenders to defy the odds and thrive

A large proportion are repositioning themselves and their product offerings in response to current market challenges. Thirty-six per cent of lenders are now actively looking to launch new lending products.

Tui Allen, vice president of product and design at Ampla, a fintech enabling business growth, commented: “There have been dramatic changes for entrepreneurs over the last several years.

“We’ve seen traditional banks, even fintech, not always keep up. We’ve worked quickly to evolve with our customers, moving from a single lending solution to a platform that facilitates payments across the consumer brand ecosystem via digital banking, bill pay, insights, and corporate cards to our customers – all in the last 18 months.”

Lenders are honing in their market focus, as a trend of industry specialisation grows. These lenders are now targeting larger businesses (31 per cent), specialising in lending to particular industries (38 per cent) and moving away from segments where they have low product-market fit (35 per cent).

Ed Sherrington, head of product for banks and lending at Codat, explained: “From conversations with our business lending clients, it’s clear that parts of this segment are demonstrating impressive resilience.

“Rather than reducing their appetite to experiment with new ways of working, many are leaning in to address increased levels of risk and a greater need for efficiency by making better use of data.

“The market is certainly challenging, but we’ve seen digital lenders with a tightly defined target audience and clear differentiation continue to thrive despite headwinds.”

A number of financial organisations have fallen into the trap of using legacy technology for too long and not updating either their tech or their approach in the past. For those looking to avoid the same fate, embedded finance could provide an appropriate answer.

Ivo Gueorguiev, the co-founder and executive chairman of Paynetics, a regulated e-money institution, passported to provide its services across the EU and the UK, discusses the potential of embedded finance in remaining competitive against a strengthening fintech sector and improving customer experience.

The financial industry has changed over the past five years thanks to technological advancements, new partnerships, and radically changing consumer behaviour. As a result, the co-habitation of banks and fintechs has been a rocky journey. Traditional banking relationships have taken a back seat, and there has been a shift towards exceptional digital customer experiences being valued the most.

Traditional and established program managers now face the dual challenge of meeting rising customer expectations and competing against the growing influence of fintech startups.

The rules of engagement have changed. Implementing embedded finance can help program managers maintain their competitiveness, enhance the customer experience and unlock new growth opportunities.

Adapting to the changing fintech landscape

The financial services sector is working under an exciting and dynamic landscape. Fintech companies are revolutionising the delivery of financial services and challenging conventional providers, including banks and incumbent program managers, by streamlining processes and offering a superior user experience.

In the competitive market, program managers must look to match the higher bar in terms of customer experience, time to market, flexibility and overall program controls.

There also needs to be a focus on value-added services such as personalised customer support, training programs and embedded payment solutions. Program managers can go beyond the core product or service to provide additional benefits that address specific customer needs.

The power of embedded payments

Embedded payments offer several benefits to program managers who deliver a product that requires a payment element. It enables them to stand out and successfully compete with emerging fintechs after their business and market share. Rather than redirecting users to external payment gateways or using separate payment methods, embedded finance enables users to complete transactions without leaving the application or website.

• Enhanced User Experience – By digitising the overall proposition and then incorporating payment functionality directly into the application, embedded finance creates a better customer experience by making convenient and popular features such as same-page checkouts and seamless payments possible. These capabilities enable consumers to receive personalised financial services within their favourite brand’s digital ecosystem.
• Increased Conversion Rates – Simplifying the payment process and reducing friction can significantly improve conversion rates. Users can seamlessly make purchases or payments within the application, making them more likely to complete transactions. This can lead to higher sales, improved revenue, and overall business performance.
• Improved Retention and Loyalty – Embedded payments contribute to customer retention and loyalty. By providing a seamless and hassle-free payment experience, program managers can enhance customer satisfaction and encourage repeat usage of the application. In turn, satisfied customers will remain loyal and recommend the platform to others
• Monetisation Opportunities – Embedding payments opens up various additional monetisation possibilities for program managers. They can offer additional premium features or content for a fee within the application, implement subscription models, and also earn transaction-based revenue through commissions or fees. This diversification of revenue streams benefits the financial sustainability and growth of the business
• Valuable Data Insights – Integrated payment solutions often provide valuable data and analytics on customer behaviour and transaction patterns. Program managers can leverage this data to gain insights into user preferences, optimise pricing strategies, and also identify opportunities for upselling or cross-selling. Additionally, they can make data-driven decisions to improve app performance and revenue generation.
• Security Compliance – Embedded payment solutions adhere to stringent security standards and compliance requirements to protect sensitive customer data and financial information. Reputable payment providers allow program managers to mitigate security risks and ensure that transactions are conducted securely and safely within their applications.
• Regulatory Compliance – Embracing the automation of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures, streamlining transactions and risk management will allow businesses to adhere to European regulations while maintaining a positive customer experience with reduced delays and issues. Program managers can also make informed decisions on technology and partnerships, ensuring regulatory compliance and trustworthy services.

Looking to the future

As program managers look to stay ahead in the industry, capitalise on the existing client base and prepare themselves against increasingly complex challenges, embedded payments offer a modular and scalable solution.

It gives program managers the opportunity to create a seamless, user-friendly payment experience within software applications or platforms enabling them to greatly improve user satisfaction, boost conversion rates, as well as ultimately increase revenue opportunities.