As the new year begins, it's a great time to look forward to what 2025 has in store for fintech companies. As the Senior VP of Business Technology, Customer Success at Discover, I'm responsible for bringing together the people, processes and technology that support our customers' successful interactions with Discover technology.
For me, I'm most excited about the fintech trends that I believe will help Discover deliver faster, more secure, resilient technology that benefits our customers. Here are the 6 trends that I see taking off in 2025.
1. Convergence of Developer Platforms and SRE Practices
The financial services industry is witnessing a significant integration of developer platforms and Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) platforms to enhance productivity and platform robustness. This convergence enables streamlined workflows, from code deployment to production, with built-in observability, automated testing, and incident response mechanisms.
By fostering collaboration between development and operations teams, organizations are accelerating product delivery while maintaining high standards of reliability and security. Unified platforms provide developers with the tools they need to innovate quickly, while SRE ensures that systems are resilient, scalable, and perform optimally in production environments.
2. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
Generative AI (GenAI) took the world by storm this year, with everyday people being able to access the likes of ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot. Companies across the globe are finding ways to integrate GenAI into their solutions, with more risk-averse fintech companies signing on to take advantage of its power.
AI and ML will continue to support financial services by enhancing customer experiences, automating processes, and improving risk management. These technologies have the potential to improve fraud detection through predictive analytics and better support customer needs.
3. Cybersecurity and RegTech
With the rise of digital transactions, cybersecurity remains a top priority. Regulatory Technology (RegTech) solutions are being created and implemented to automate compliance processes, manage risks, and ensure adherence to evolving regulations. This focus on security and compliance is essential for maintaining customer trust and safeguarding financial systems.
4. Cloud Computing and SaaS Solutions
The adoption of cloud-based services and Software as a Service (SaaS) models are increasing operational efficiency and scalability. Financial institutions are leveraging these technologies to modernize legacy systems, reduce costs, and accelerate the deployment of new services, thereby enhancing agility in a competitive market and better support customer needs.
5. Dynamic Customer Journeys through Design Thinking and Adaptive UIs
Financial institutions are embracing design thinking and adaptive user interfaces (UIs) to craft dynamic, customer-centric journeys. By leveraging real-time data and customer insights, financial platforms can adapt their interfaces and workflows to meet individual user needs, preferences, and behaviors.
This approach ensures that interactions are intuitive and personalized, enhancing user satisfaction and engagement. Dynamic UIs adjust to various contexts, such as device type, user proficiency, or the complexity of the financial product, while design thinking methodologies prioritize empathy and iterative improvement. Together, these strategies enable institutions to deliver seamless experiences that evolve with their customers, fostering long-term loyalty and trust.
6. Open Source as a Catalyst for Innovation in Financial Services
Open source is becoming a cornerstone of technological innovation in financial services, fostering collaboration, transparency, and rapid development. By adopting open-source technologies, financial institutions can leverage community-driven advancements to accelerate product development, reduce costs, and avoid vendor lock-in.
Open source enables the creation of shared tools and platforms for critical areas such as payments, security, and analytics. Furthermore, it promotes a culture of innovation where institutions contribute to and benefit from collective knowledge sharing. By integrating open-source solutions, financial services can remain agile, enhance interoperability, and quickly adapt to evolving customer and regulatory demands.
