Big data – the game changer reshaping the financial industry

Almost half of finance professionals (45%) regard big data as the most influential trend in the financial sector, according to the Onguard FinTech Barometer survey. Despite more than one-third of respondents (36%) expecting big data to impact employment, very few think it will actually lead to job losses. In fact, more than three-quarters of finance professionals (87%) are confident that their jobs will still exist ten years from now.

The role of big data
The FinTech Barometer survey revealed that availability of data is a crucial factor for organisations. As many as 93% of companies use data and of these, 24% say their company is all about data. Therefore, it is hardly surprising that 45% of finance professionals see big data as a game changer that is reshaping the sector. Research shows that only 7% of companies do nothing with the data they collect and only 6% of finance professionals are unaware of how their company uses data.

New technologies and data acquisition and storage systems are advancing so rapidly that 43% of finance professionals believe financial service providers will essentially become IT companies over the next ten years. This, combined with the growing importance of big data, may explain why 30% of CFOs and other finance professionals anticipate having to develop data-analysis skills in the not-too-distant future.
 
Onguard CTO Marieke Saeij is fully aware of the value of big data: “As far as we are concerned, big data is not just a passing trend, so it is important that finance professionals learn how to harness it in their work. The ability to interpret the available data can add value, but for big data to be really useful it needs to be translated into actionable insights. At the moment many finance professionals fail to see how big data analysis relates to what they do, but it is the tool that can yield profound insights, improve performance and enhance customer experience.”