SME banking is a particular interest of mine, as long-time listeners know.

We've covered it from a number of angles on Rebank, including challenger banking with OakNorth, digital lending with iwoca and Spotcap, payments with GoCardless and support services with Xero, to name a few.

If one area of fintech has been getting increasing interest lately, it's SME banking, and it's about time.

Last week, Pool A of the RBS Capability & Innovation Fund was allocated, with massive cash grants going to winners Metro Bank, Starling and ClearBank to enhance existing business current account offerings. The cash injections are sure to shake up competition in the space.

Today, we're joined by Richard Davies to talk through recent developments and the broader trajectory of the space. Richard runs business banking and sits on the Executive Committee at TSB, the UK's 7th largest bank.

If you enjoy today's episode, please take 30 seconds to leave us a review on iTunes.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Richard Davies.

Rishi Khosla is co-founder and CEO of OakNorth, one of the world's best funded and fastest growing fintechs.

We've had OakNorth on the podcast a few times before. In the past, I've generally referred to OakNorth as a challenger bank, which they were, but the company has developed beyond that description.

From its savings & lending origins, OakNorth has evolved into a world-class technology platform with a banking license, recently backed by investors, including SoftBank, to the tune of $440m, the largest ever fintech investment in Europe.

Prior to starting OakNorth, Rishi and his business partner Joel Perlman founded and sold Copal Amba, an outsourced financial research company acquired by Moodys.

It's energizing talking to great entrepreneurs like Rishi. I thoroughly enjoyed this conversation, and I hope you do too.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Rishi Khosla.

If you enjoy today's episode, please take 30 seconds to leave us a review on iTunes.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Nicolas Colin.

Anytime I find myself thinking how much progress has been made in digital banking over the past 6 or so years, I stop to consider how much further we'll go from here. It feels like so much has happened since the paradigm shift brought about by the iPhone and the global banking crisis of 2008.

No one knows that better than Anthony Thomson.

Anthony is by any measure one of the most prolific banking innovators of the past decade. Anthony is the Co-Founder and former Chairman of Metro Bank and Founder and former Chairman of Atom Bank. As if that weren't enough, he's now the Co-Founder and Chairman of 86 400, a new digital bank in Australia.

Over the course of his career, Anthony has raised close to a $1 billion (and counting) in investment and helped shape the current global banking landscape.

What are the most important problems banking and fintech can solve? Are we thinking enough about the deepest customer needs or just iterating within existing financial services verticals?

Let us know what you think on Twitter @rebankpodcast.

If you enjoy today's episode, please take 30 seconds to leave us a review on iTunes.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Anthony Thomson.

We've seen a slow evolution in fintech from the early days - transitioning from disruptors and disintermediators to partners and platforms. Where do we go from here?

Tim Levene is the Founder and CEO of Augmentum, a fintech venture capital firm.

Prior to starting Augmentum, Tim worked for Bain, started London restaurant chain Crussh and founded Flutter.com, which merged with Betfair in 2001, at the beginning of the latter's rise to prominence.

Augmentum has invested in companies including Zopa, Seedrs, Interactive Investor, Tide, DueDil and more.

What's in store for fintech in 2019? Let us know on Twitter @rebankpodcast.

If you like today's episode, please take a second to rate us on iTunes.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Tim Levene.

The US could be one of the most lucrative markets for digital banks, but few new entrants have launched there. Why? How ripe is the opportunity, really?

Monzo, N26 and Revolut have all stated intentions to launch in the US, though none have yet navigated the regulatory requirements.

Colin Walsh is the CEO and co-founder of Varo Money, which is on track to become the first mobile-centric national bank in U.S. history.

Prior to founding Varo, Colin spent 25 years in consumer banking at American Express, Lloyds Banking Group and Wells Fargo.

How successful will digital banking startups be in US? Let us know on Twitter @rebankpodcast.

If you like today's episode, please take 30 seconds to rate us on iTunes and share it with a friend.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Colin Walsh.

Should people outside fintech care about fintech? Today, we're joined by Brad Goodall, serial entrepreneur and founder of Banked, to discuss.

Open Banking is hands down one of the most relevant themes in 2018, with legislation taking effect in Europe and the UK and being replicated and expanded in countries like Australia.

But so far, we've seen anything but tangible impacts from Open Banking, including products, services and new customer experiences.

Why?

To start with, banks dragged their feet in terms of implementation, and startups have been unable to deliver cross-platform experiences they imagined.

We've also taken a narrow view of what Open Banking means and how it will be leveraged.

This is where Brad comes in. Brad brings a richer perspective to Open Banking and sees it as an opportunity for much of banking to shift away from traditional financial services providers and over to consumer brands more relevant to customers.

In this conversation, Brad helps us think about how much fintech actually matters to people outside fintech - and whether the industry is getting excited about the right things.

Do you have a view? Join the conversation onTwitter, LinkedIn or on our website at bankingthefuture.com.

If you like today's episode, please take 30 seconds to rate us on iTunes and share us with a friend.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Brad Goodall.

Should we look to governments, philanthropists or entrepreneurs to solve our problems?

We're joined by Sean Park, Founder of Anthemis, a fintech-focused venture capital firm, to discuss.

There's a strong school of thought in the West that the private sector and market dynamics are sufficient to optimize economic, political and social outcomes. Is that true?

Thinkers like economist Carlota Perez believe that government plays an important role in directing private sector activity to enable true innovation.

The Chinese government is actively prioritizing AI research in an effort to become the world leader in the next wave of technological progress.

A growing group of voices in the West is reminding us of the role the US government played in the development of the Internet and calling for renewed public sector involvement in business.

Sean was an early investor in Climate Corporation, Markit, Betfair and Zoopla and is widely recognized as a leading independent thinker on the future of financial services

Do you have an opinion on this subject? Contribute to the conversation on Twitter, LinkedIn or on our website at bankingthefuture.com.

If you like today's episode, please take 30 seconds to rate us on iTunes and share us with a friend.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please welcome, Sean Park.

Welcome to the third instalment of our Founder Sessions series.

Tom Blomfield is the Founder & CEO of Monzo, one of the UK's leading digital banks. 

For Tom's full backstory, check out Rebank Episode 17, when we first connected with him. For an update on Monzo, including recently hitting the million customer milestone, check out Episode 108.

Special thanks to everyone who responded to our request and rated and reviewed Rebank on iTunes. We've seen a marked boost to listenership already.

Thank you very much for joining us today. Please enjoy today's episode with Tom Blomfield.