Citi CEO says 2 AI races are shaping future of banking
Jane Fraser says first race is to use technology to drive revenue growth; second one is to make sure the financial ecosystem is secure
The global financial sector is engaged in two simultaneous and critical races as AI evolves at an unprecedented rate, according to Jane Fraser, the CEO of Citi, the third-largest bank in the United States.
While artificial intelligence was likely to cause some job dislocations, new positions would be created, even though the transition process might not be perfectly timed, Fraser said in an interview with the South China Morning Post.
“There are two races in AI at the moment,” she said. “One is to apply AI to the business models, which we all have to do as that will help drive revenue growth.”
Fraser said AI would shorten product development cycles and allow the bank to create new revenue streams.
“There are a lot of different elements of it that are helping drive growth,” she said, adding that AI was helping to “make the bank more efficient and make customer service better”.
The second race was a defensive one to fortify the financial ecosystem against sophisticated threats.
“These AI models are very powerful, and our job is to make sure the financial system, the bank, our customers and the ecosystem we operate in are secure,” Fraser said.