Seamless Africa, a unique global event brand bringing together the converging worlds of the financial services industry and the retail and e-commerce ecosystem, is a platform where decision makers and regulators can converse about the concerns and developments in their industry.
The most recent and notable developments in the banking sector look at the future of this industry in terms of AI. Where the general public has mixed feelings about either optimistically embracing the new possibilities or fearfully rejecting the looming doom, the banking industry is forced to be open-minded. No other industry is quite as aware of the dangers and benefits of utilising this tech.
Insight from Seamless Africa 2025
This year spotlighted banking and payments in a series of panel discussions, keynotes and presentations.
Feedback from the first panel discussion (Future-proofing payment operations by leveraging Gen AI and machine learning tools to stay competitive in a disruptive market) noted that AI has a useful role to play in customer journeys, fraud detection, hyper-personalisation, and customer service.
As the CEO of Helm recently stated in a press release, banks today aren’t just competing on rates or products; they’re also competing on relevance. “Relevance means understanding your customer deeply, acting fast, and delivering flawlessly across channels. AI is the official enabler of that kind of banking,” says Dawood Patel, Chief Executive Officer at Helm.
“Globally, we are seeing AI improve everything from decision-making to customer experience. In banking, it’s driving more accurate risk and fraud detection, accelerating credit assessments, enabling faster onboarding, and reducing the cost and complexity of compliance. J.P. Morgan, for example, has reported a 20% reduction in account validation rejection rates thanks to AI-powered fraud screening.”
Hyper-personalisation and Offering Relevant Service Through AI
During another panel discussion, the future and the latest tools were discussed. This panel (AI and machine learning in the rise of neo: the next age of customer experience) highlighted that where AI and machine learning enhance customer experience, there is a fine line between serving the customer and offending the customer. Drawing on the example of a mother, Dalene Deale, Payments Specialist for Women in Payments Africa, explained that the hyper-personalised experience a mother receives through her bank needs to benefit her in the context of her life as a mother. This can be anything from budgeting to advice on introducing children to banking. The panel, however, cautioned that there is a risk of causing harm and being unhelpful that can slip in through the biases contained within the information that AI models are trained on.
The Concerns for the Public for AI and Banking
Kenneth Williams, Identity Solutions Senior Manager Africa from Facephi, also addressed the concern of fraud in banking, thanks to AI. His presentation looked at both sides of the AI-coin; There is a concerning amount of increase in fraud thanks to AI, some institutions calculating 300% more than previously encountered, but this technology can also benefit the bank and the user in detecting unusual behaviour early.
With this information in mind, consumers can rest assured that banks are taking the threat of AI-powered scams such as deep fakes, vishing, and phishing extremely seriously. But just because tools such as generative AI are used to harm people, it doesn’t mean the technology itself is bad. Where machine learning can be employed to recognise patterns contained in scams, it can protect banking clients from becoming victims. Almost like consumers used to be warned to ignore e-mails from a Nigerian Prince who wants to share his fortune, AI can search for these identifying characteristics.
Customers and banking clients don’t need ot fear artificial intelligence. It is just another tool in the toolbox for many tech users. Although these tools are also not without risk, it is important to stay aware of the latest developments and protect yourself against the harm that malevolent individuals construct.
