The Banking Scene Director's Cut

Diary of a Ponzi Scheme by Chris Skinner - book review with Julia Streets & Wasim Mushtaq

In our first ever book review, we invited guests, Julia Streets and Wasim Mushtaq to join us along with Chris Skinner, for a dive into Chris Skinner's first foray into fiction, "Diary of a Ponzi Scheme". It's a unique blend of finance and fiction (a completely new genre that Chris calls "Finction"), that challenges conventional thinking about trust and social proof in investments. In it, Chris explores how appearances can deceive and how the right narrative can sway even the most sceptical investor. This is a story that reflects real-world dynamics, from the glitz of London's social scene to the intricacies of tokenisation, and offers insights that are both entertaining and enlightening for all readers. You can find out more about the book and how to buy it here [https://ponzi-scheme-diary.com/].

AI and The Agentic Future of Banking: Moving From Insight to Action

The Banking Scene LIVE webinar preview of highlights from our latest white paper, "AI and The Agentic Future of Banking". This session explores the monumental shift in financial services from passive Generative AI assistants to fully autonomous, goal-oriented AI agents.Discover how leading financial institutions like ING, Rabobank and Revolut are scaling agentic architectures in production to revolutionise mortgage processing, fraud containment, and perpetual KYC automation. We also tackle the critical risks of this shift, including cascading errors and machine collusion and unpack the rise of the "Agentic Customer" powered by individual digital twins.If you prefer to dive straight into the full white paper, you can download it from our website here [https://thebankingscene.com/resources/ai-and-the-agentic-future-of-banking/].

How Banks can Derive Value from Agentic AI in 2026

Agentic AI is currently one of the most discussed topics in banking, but the conversation is moving beyond the excitement of new technology. For banks, the real question is no longer whether agentic AI has potential, it is how to deploy it safely, measure it properly, govern it effectively and turn experimentation into enterprise value.This was the central theme of a recent conversation we had with Alok Chaurasia, Associate Vice President and Anshuman Choudhary, Consulting Leader, GRC Northern Europe at Cognizant, reflecting on a Think Tank session we convened in Brussels in collaboration with Cognizant and Microsoft. You can find a summary of the insights from the discussion on our website here [https://thebankingscene.com/opinions/how-banks-can-derive-value-from-agentic-ai/].

How ING is Using Agentic AI to Streamline Banking Operations

Most banks are currently talking about Agentic AI, ING is actually deploying it at scale and seeing real results. In this episode, Thomas Geerinck, ING’s Groupwide Retail Chief Data Officer, shares how the bank is turning AI into tangible business value through agentic AI, beyond just experiments. Discover why scale, infrastructure, and strategic deployment are the key differentiators for banks aiming to lead in AI-powered financial services. Thomas breaks down how ING has evolved from basic machine learning to fully orchestrated, agentic workflows that automate complex processes like mortgage handling and client onboarding. You'll learn about the architecture of agentic AI: how it handles decisions, interacts with clients, and executes tasks, while staying within strict guardrails and human oversight. He shares real use cases that demonstrate how agentic AI is revolutionising operational efficiency and customer experience.If you prefer to read, you can find the full interview transcript in the blog on our website here [https://thebankingscene.com/opinions/how-ing-is-using-agentic-ai-to-streamline-banking-operations/].

Open Banking and Embedded Finance: Are we There Yet? With special guest Nicola Breyer

"Are we there yet?". When it comes to Open Banking and Embedded Finance, are we still debating if we should, instead of implementing what we can? How do we (the Benelux Banks) stack up against the rest of the world and what can we learn from them? Is regulation a help or a hindrance? We have so many questions and we are sure you do too, which is why we invited Nicola Breyer, an internationally recognised expert on open data and embedded finance, who frequently speaks and publishes on the topic, to help us set the scene before we begin our Q3 research. In this session, we unpacked what went right and wrong after PSD2, why PSD3 / PSR and FIDA (Financial Data Access Regulation) may already be outdated, and how the rapid rise of AI assistants, agentic AI, and data platforms like Plaid is reshaping the future of financial services. You’ll hear candid views on: * Why consumer adoption of open banking is still low * How poor UX, lack of data standards, and no remuneration for banks held back innovation * Whether we really need FIDA to make open finance work * The race between European regulation and US tech / AI platforms * What “financial home” and “My CFO for SMEs” use cases could look like * How banks risk losing the customer relationship to AI platforms—and what they can do about it If you prefer to read rather than listen, you can find a summary of the session on our website here [https://thebankingscene.com/opinions/open-banking-and-embedded-finance-who-defines-the-strategic-agenda/].