In a recent article for Bank Director, Jeff Grobaski, CEO of Epic River, a lending-as-a-service platform, emphasizes the unique advantage community banks have in fostering local business relationships to drive growth. Key Takeaways: Community Focus: Unlike national banks, community banks have a deeper understanding of their local markets and can build stronger connections with businesses in their communities. Identifying High-Potential Businesses: Grobaski suggests focusing on businesses with top talent, strong community leadership, and those in growth industries, such as healthcare, green energy, and technology. Building Trust: Community banks can leverage personal relationships and referrals to build trust with potential business clients, offering a more personalized experience than larger institutions. Meeting Needs: By understanding the specific needs of local businesses, community banks can tailor financial solutions that cater to their growth and resilience. Grobaski highlights that the pandemic-induced economic stimulus presents a unique opportunity for community banks to capitalize on their local presence and foster relationships with high-performing businesses, ultimately leading to increased deposits, loan demand, and overall growth.

In this first installment of Finopotamus' annual "Holiday Tech Wish List" series, fintech and credit union executives share their technology aspirations for 2024. Philip Paul, CEO of Cotribute, highlights the need for streamlined account opening processes for credit unions, emphasizing the importance of automation and a seamless user experience to attract and retain members in the face of competition from consumer fintechs. Other executives, including Epic River's CEO, Jeff Grobaski, also share their wishes, ranging from integrating advanced technologies to enhance operational efficiency to adopting solutions that prioritize profitability and member satisfaction. The series promises to offer valuable insights into the evolving technology landscape for financial institutions and the innovative solutions they seek to implement in the coming year.

In the ever-changing landscape of healthcare economics, there has been a disproportionate increase in hospitals' bad debt. Over the past three years, hospitals are grappling with over 45% surge1 in bad debt stemming from self-pay patients post adjudication (11% in 2018 to over 57% in 2021).

As technology continues to shape the way we conduct our financial transactions, it's becoming increasingly clear that FinTechs and online lenders are challenging the traditional model of banking. However, community banks are not sitting idle in the face of this disruption. Instead, they are embracing BankTech partnerships to leverage their current suite of services and stay ahead of the curve.

See the original press release here: https://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/07/prweb15624140.htm