BNP Paribas, leveraging Open Innovation to build the 'Bank of Tomorrow' [Sponsored]

The Bank of Tomorrow
As with many sectors, the financial sector is undergoing fundamental shift thanks to technology.  The rise of Fintech is changing how both consumers and companies bank. While regulation is a challenge for Fintech, it’s evident that over time, laws will evolve and new models of financial management, investing, and banking will become the norm rather than the exception. As a result, it’s imperative that banks evolve in order to maintain their edge in the digital age.
One bank that is ahead of the curve is BNP Paribas who have put digital innovation at the core of their strategy and at the heart of their DNA. For BNP Paribas, the revolution underway in the finance sector requires a laser focus on innovation to conceive and build ‘the bank of tomorrow’. They define this bank as being:
“Both physical and digital, combining the best of both worlds, meaning…new forms of interactivity facilitated by social networks, new services around mobility, digital transformation, and simplification of processes. For BNP Paribas, being innovative means anticipating changes that are affecting our clients and transforming these changes into opportunities.”
Open Innovation
Fostering true, open innovation is how the bank of tomorrow will become a reality at BNP Paribas. They’ve already set in motion their transformation, where startup engagement figures prominently and is seen as key to enabling Open Innovation. For years, BNP Paribas has been a supporter of the tech ecosystem in France and, as a global company, other regions in the world via sponsoring events, launching their own internal accelerators/incubators/tech hubs Lux Future Lab in Luxembourg and TEB start-up House, and partnering with other ecosystem stakeholders such as Partech Shaker and NUMA.
However, they know that the aspect of tech ecosystems where there’s still arguably the most work to do is finding ways to drive innovation via productive partnerships between startups and medium and large corporates. As a result, they’ve also launched and/or are supporting several efforts to bring together innovative corporates and startups. Their big initiative around this area is Innov&Connect, a multi-dimensional initiative which combines acceleration, incubation and a platform to bring together startups and innovative corporates. For the moment, Innov&Connect is just focused on France, but given that fostering business and better relations between startups and corporates is a need everywhere, hopefully this compelling new initiative will soon be launched in other markets.