2023 got off on the right foot with our colleagues attending two amazing events: Frankfurt Digital Finance and Berlin E-Commerce Expo! There they got to meet industry experts and hear their thoughts on how the financial and e-commerce markets will evolve and the principles and technologies that will help businesses keep up.

We want to share with you the most impactful ideas from both events and add our own insights and experience into the mix.

Frankfurt Digital Finance - a peek into the future of finance

Frankfurt Digital Finance is a German event that has connected Europe's whole digital finance ecosystem. They have fostered innovation and collaboration in the financial technology industry time and again, and 2023 may have been its best year yet.

Andrea Marliere (CEO), Adina Suciu (Co-CEO), and Tudor Trisca (Head of Financial Technologies) had the pleasure of attending the event and mingling with experts in the financial industry. Here are two fascinating subjects that they got to learn more about:

Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) in the Financial Industry

ESG Transformation presents a unique opportunity for the European Financial Industry to address sustainability issues, create value for stakeholders, and differentiate itself in a crowded market.

It's no secret that we live in a world of change, especially in achieving sustainability. Net zero goals are embedded in most banks' corporate activities, not only to save our planet but also to grow sustainably.

More and more investors choose to look into a company's impact before funding it. They don't only care about carbon emissions but also about the social and ethical standards within a corporation. So, it's not only essential to define net zero targets but also to care about the employees' satisfaction.

But having a good ESG-Score does not only help to attract potential investors. Companies that focus on ESG drive innovation, cultivate their brand, and prepare for inevitable future regulations (and the disruptions they may bring).

The ESG Transformation is in full swing and will become increasingly important. It is crucial for many corporations to start today to pave the way to a more sustainable future by caring about the interests of all their stakeholders.

Modern counters to fraud and money laundering

Fraud, specifically money laundering, remains a prevalent issue worldwide. The United Nations (UN) states that the amount of money laundered annually is between 2-5% of the Global GDP, which will rise even higher if corporations fail to establish preventive actions.

Luckily, digital solutions for such illegal activity have come a long way in the past years, keeping up with the attempts at misrepresentation. Such preventive actions could be:

• Optimize Know Your Customer (KYC) Verification Processes

KYC is an essential step in any Anti Money Laundering (AML) program and is compulsory for banks to identify suspicious transactions. A strong KYC process can include facial recognition, fingerprint scans, and financial statements. This will ensure that your clients are the people they claim to be and protect all your company's stakeholders.

• Perform exhaustive customer analysis

Before setting up a contract for a partnership, it is required to do a background check about your possible customer. One way of doing this is to contact the trade standards authority or a local government agency to gather information. This is part of the Customer due diligence (CDD) process, a critical component of any financial institution's risk management strategy.

• Always update security systems

Fraudsters are always developing new ways to bypass databases, so keeping your software up to date is essential to protect yourself and the company stakeholders from vulnerabilities. Ensure that you have rigorous security processes like two-factor authentication and educate employees to avoid scams and phishing attempts.

Berlin E-Commerce Expo - defining a next-level shopping experience

With over 70 speakers and 250 exhibitors, including some of the biggest names in e-commerce, our teams of attendees never had a dull moment. Andrei Marginean (Head of Sales), Corina Stirbu (Marketing Lead), and Adrian Nica (Head of Service Delivery) enjoyed themselves greatly, both at the event and in the vibrant city of Berlin.

Besides meeting great people and enjoying the electric atmosphere at the expo, they learned more about:

Using Artificial Intelligence, automation, and analytics to drive growth

When an online commerce business decides to expand to new countries, it must plan and implement new systems to ensure competitiveness. Establishing flexible supply chains, and managing stock and distribution - all these are complex tasks, and increases in efficiency can have a huge impact. That's why many companies decided to invest in automation:

• Analyzing key performance indicators and customer behavior becomes much easier once you set up a system to monitor progress and autonomously generate actionable insights for your team.

• Artificial Intelligence can help with many aspects of an e-commerce business, such as online support for new customers via chatbots or translating but also localizing the website to new regions.

• Robotic process automation can free up considerable time for your team by applying rule-based logic to tasks such as demand-supply planning, inventory management, or document exchange.

Values as the basis for a healthy relationship with customers

Any retailer wants to maintain strong and long-lasting relationships with their customers, but what are the steps to achieving this? While there may not be some simple formula to ensure success, a takeaway that stuck with us is how much people care about the values and ethics behind the brands they buy.

Ensuring fairness, minimizing your carbon footprint, and launching initiatives in line with your company values show your audience that you're focused on the long term. Not only are today's consumers more interested in corporate social responsibility, but they're also more skeptical. The old adage applies in this situation - actions speak louder than words.

The tech event experience

It was illuminating and exciting to come together with so many experts, each with their own ideas on bringing more value to businesses and their clients alike. It wasn't about showing off but about sharing thoughts freely and growing together.

We've always valued bright ideas and insights that lead to a better life for those around us. Innovation can produce all kinds of great results, whether it's a lighter workload for whole teams or delightful experiences for the end user. All these have one thing in common, though - they all started with pioneers imagining how they could change things for the better.

It was amazing meeting such people at the events, and we can't wait to attend many others this year!