Month in, month out, BillGO’s book suggestions regularly rank among our most popular blogs. Whether we identify fintech books that boldly forecast the future, or share book suggestions from industry thought leaders, On the GO readers click like crazy.
Now that we’re in the thick of summer, it seems like a good time to call out some recent books that will appeal to financial services executives looking for something to peruse while resting in a shady hammock or beneath a beach umbrella.
With so many books on the market, building a list was a challenge, but seeing how we have only a few weeks until Labor Day, we settled on the following five fintech books that are available both digitally or in hard copies.
Tomorrow’s Money
By Frank Schwab
What does the future of our monetary and payment systems look like? Even though most economists confirm we are now in the throes of another “crypto winter,” Frank Schwab believes decentralized finance (or DeFi) still has a role to play in the future of finance.
Schwab is a longtime veteran of the banking industry, and as a strategic advisor, speaker and influencer, he helps financial institutions (FIs) and fintechs navigate transformation in the banking industry.
Tomorrow’s Money takes a detailed look at how bitcoin, blockchain and blockchain-adjacent companies remain poised to radically change our economic systems by expanding access to financial services and stable currencies, among other things.
Embedded Finance: When Payments Become an Experience
By: Scarlett Sieber and Sophie Guibaud
Scarlett Sieber is Chief Strategy & Growth Officer at Money20/20 and a regular contributor to Forbes, The Financial Brand and others. Sophie Guibaud is co-founder of Fiat Republic and a recognized thought leader on embedded finance and payments with a focus on helping cryptocurrencies gain mainstream adoption by leveraging fiat payments.
In Embedded Finance, Sieber and Guibaud discuss the impact embedded finance applications, particularly payments, are having on businesses, economic systems and the overall customer experience. The book also considers the role traditional financial services organizations might play in a world where non-financial companies are embedding common financial applications (payments, purchase financing and insurance coverage) right at the point of sale.
Fintech Women Walk the Talk
Fintech Women Walk the Talk is a call-to-action demanding diversity and gender parity in the fintech industry. Author and podcaster Nadia Edwards-Dashti draws on interviews she has conducted with more than 150 fintech experts – including 100+ women she’s interviewed. The book examines a wide variety of successes women in the fintech industry have achieved while exploring practical ways the industry can foster inclusion and equity while overcoming age-old challenges women encounter.
Industry veteran Kate Bohn calls Fintech Women Walk the Talk “an inspiring collection of evidence-based insights.”
Banks and Fintech on Platform Economies: Contextual and Conscious Banking
By: Paolo Sironi
Paolo Sironi, an influencer, and researcher in banking and financial markets at IBM Consulting, the Institute for Business Value, offers an insightful argument on behalf of how platform theory could transform the way FIs and fintechs do business.
This book looks at the shift in thinking needed to help banks strengthen and extend the reach of their Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) and Banking-as-a-Platform (BaaP) operations. It also examines how the industry can reclaim its trusted role as big tech contenders continue to gain market share.
Whether you occupy the C-Suite or work as an entrepreneur, fintech exec, industry researcher or wealth manager, you’ll find Sironi’s insights provocative.
The Field Guide to Global Payments
By: Sophia Goldberg
This book offers a comprehensive introduction to the global payments industry, including the rise of payments, current trends and developments and a look at emerging payment models. As payments continue to evolve and change, The Field Guide to Global Payments is a foundational read for anyone interested in or involved in the payments industry as it gives an intelligent overview of the key concepts and trends that underpin our payment systems and economy.
“With this book,” the jacket blurb promises, “readers will finally have access to a high-level overview of this crucial but complex space. [It’s] for anyone who is either interested in payments or in a role that touches payments – that could be an accounting team who processes payments, someone starting a job within a payments company or payments team, business owners looking to better understand funds flow and subscriptions models from a payments perspective, or executives who want to learn more about the mechanics of where much of their revenue literally comes from.”
Next Steps
Still looking for enlightening edification to enjoy during the remaining days of summer? Download BillGO’s new whitepaper, Banking on Financial Well-Being, which delivers a concise, but invaluable look at how financial services executives can build meaningful, long-lasting customer relationships.