Mary Mumper-Morrison, AAP, APRP, CAMS, NCP, is NEACH’s Director of Education and Lead Advisor of NEACH Payments Group. She is focused primarily on addressing compliance and risk issues and helping financial institutions, corporations, and vendors solve operational and regulatory challenges, manage risk, and drive financial and business improvement through a suite of audit, risk management, and consulting services.
We sat down with Mary to discuss what members can gain from attending the upcoming Future of Payments Symposium, especially from FinTech partnership and compliance perspectives.
What is happening now in the world of payments that you find exciting and challenging?
FinTech collaboration is key. There is so much potential in working with FinTechs to address hurdles. There also is so much they can add their portfolios that they may never have seen if they only work with typical industry partners.
It’s exciting but also scary. Partnerships can be risky, and you need to mitigate those risks. But overall, I find it an exciting time to think of the possibilities to come. For example, who knows the potential AI can bring? Anything that’s exciting will also have a scary component. That’s not necessarily a bad thing but you need to manage risk as you are implementing and getting into a partnership.
Your Future of Payments session is on this very topic: “Compliance Considerations of Fintech & Banking Relationships.” Can you share a little more about what you’ll be discussing?
Back in June 2023, there was inter-agency guidance released on third-party risk management, which replaced a lot of what was already out there. That guidance is intentionally broad to encompass all types of third-party relationships an FI may have, so I’ll share more about that and its implications.
I’m also planning to review how banks and FinTechs can find, develop, and maintain lasting partnerships. The more the FinTech takes on tasks that touch the financial industry, the more oversight the FI is going to have, especially when it comes to consumer products. Sometimes it can seem overbearing, so how do you balance that?
I worked for a FinTech for 12 years before I came to NEACH, so I am familiar with the environment. I’ve also got experience before that as a banking professional, so I also have experience with risk and how partnerships can be managed.
As we think about FinTech partnerships, what are the key regulatory issues we need to keep in mind for the future of payments?
With the continued evolution of the industry comes the potential for more regulation. But regulators need to consider how any new guidance will fit or if regulations are needed based on the already established framework. Plus, we all have to remember that innovation happens quickly—but regulation often does not. I believe that the most important regulatory consider is a bank’s oversight of its partners. If your FinTech partner is charting new territory, pay attention to any new interpretations from regulators related to the arena in which they’re operating; and pay attention to consent orders or regulatory actions against other financial institutions with fintech partners, especially if they’re operating in the same space.
What, in your opinion, makes the Symposium so meaningful to those in the payments industry?
Given all the change that is continually happening in the world of payments, it’s important to stay up on what’s going on, investigate potential learning opportunities, and hear about best practices. You can ask yourself, what is my FI doing or not doing—and what could we be doing based on what I learn at the symposium. And I love this topic. I’m excited to share it with our members.
To sign up for the Future of Payments Symposium Nov. 2-3, please visit https://fps.neach.org.
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AUTHOR: Joe Casali, AAP, NCP
Executive Vice President
As the EVP of Payments Innovation for NEACH, Joe focuses on exploring innovative solutions and technologies that will help position members for success, both now and in the future. Connect with Joe to read more of his blogs, articles, and posts.