AI is the biggest talking point in payments right now, largely due to the shakeup of DeepSeek this week, and major financial institutions continue to invest in the space.
NatWest Group, one of the UK’s largest banks, has made a minority investment in Serene, an early-stage AI platform which focuses on financial vulnerability. The firm uses AI to detect signs of financial distress and predict risks to deliver personalised support.
Given the extensive talk around AI in 2024 which has shown no signs of dying down in the new year, it is no surprise that the tech remains an investment target. NatWest is no stranger to AI investment, having upgraded its customer service chatbot with AI capabilities last year, among other movements.
David Grunwald, Director of Innovation and Partnerships at NatWest Group, said: “As people continue to adapt to an ever changing world, it’s important for us to be a trusted partner who can anticipate, understand and respond to customers’ changing needs – technology is helping us to do this faster and more effectively.
“Platforms like Serene show the potential of tools like AI to improve outcomes for customers, in this case, by quickly identifying vulnerabilities to play a positive role across the financial system.”
NatWest’s minority investment in Serene is indicative not only of the bank’s interest in AI but also of its keenness to engage with the tech and fintech sectors. Serene was a participant in the NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator programme in 2023, and the bank took further notice of the firm at its latest Fintech Showcase event.
Speaking to Payment Expert last year, NatWest Group’s Head of Group Strategy and Payments, Lee McNabb, asserted that fintech is a ‘real part’ of the firm’s strategy, while also commenting on the potential of AI in banking – perhaps offering a glimpse into what the bank hopes to achieve with the tech.
“We can talk about Gen AI, it’s been around for ages, but from a banking perspective there is an opportunity to link pieces together – how can you link Open Banking and the opportunities there to Gen AI and make the customer experience better?” he said.
NatWest’s investment also comes at a pivotal moment for AI. As noted above, DeepSeek’s launch of its new large language model (LLM) open source AI platform DeepSeek-R1 has had a significant impact on the sector, worrying some American big tech firms.
One of the main takeaways from the DeekSeek-R1 launch was the platform’s low production cost. As more banks look to invest in AI startups, developments over the weekend may give tech teams confidence that the right choice of company could produce its own low-cost, high-performance AI solution.
Stakeholders are also taking note of the risks of AI, however, and need to keep these in mind. A recent report from UK Finance found concerns around reliability, data privacy and security, and the possibility of firms becoming reliant on third-party AI providers.
