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Dear Reader,
We are publishing this issue of SBB Magazine on the eve of the CEE SME Banking Club Conference 2017 (#CEE17) in Poland, which we are organizing in the region for the third consecutive year. The Polish economy has enormous development potential and is becoming increasingly innovative; it is even on the list of the top 50 innovative economies (Bloomberg Innovation Index). The Bloomberg 2017 Innovation Index ranked Poland 22nd (up from 23rd in 2016 ranking), which is the best result among CEE countries.
Implementation of innovations is one of the main priorities in the Polish financial sector, being, as they say in Poland, “experimental training ground” for further global implementation of technological solutions.
Innovations mean not only modern technologies but also new competencies and implementation of new processes.
Customer experience and design thinking are driving meaningful change in the banking industry (p. 36).
The agenda for this autumn’s CEE SME Banking Club Conference 2017 has been shaped by the high degree of bank interest in the small-business segment, and particularly in leasing and factoring services to SMEs, online lending to SMEs, digitalization of all the services provided to SMEs and the role of new players in the small business segment market – FinTechs. We will devote a separate panel during the Conference to discussing cooperation
models between banks and FinTechs. Krakow Technology Park is the venue for that panel and one of the leading institutions supporting the development of startups and fintechs in the Malopolska region and in Krakow (p. 11).
Polish commercial banks keep SME Banking a priority (p. 14); online SME banks and online SME lenders are working with SMEs on the Platform-as-a-Service and Credit-as-a-Service models (p. 17).
SMEs in Poland are increasingly taking advantage of leasing and factoring: factoring services are currently used by almost 11% of enterprises in Poland (p. 28) and 58% of companies choose leasing when it comes to investment finance. (p. 20). Leasing and factoring services are also currently undergoing digitalization in Poland.
This year the Conference is taking place in Krakow – the main city of the Malopolska region in Poland, one of the main centers of innovation and the startup community as well as one of the main academical, R&D and cultural centers in Poland. Welcome to Krakow (p. 46) and Poland!
Let’s discuss and share best practices in innovations, finance and non-financial services for SME customers!
Yours sincerely,
Andrey Gidulyan,
Founder of the SME Banking Club
