Episodes

In this episode of Banker’s Bookshelf, Paolo Sironi sits with Eric So, Sloan Distinguished Professor of Global Economics and Behavioral Science, to discuss his new book “The Collision”. The conversation opens on a distinction most AI talk skips. The industry asks what the technology can do for us. So asks what it is doing to us: to the skills we still bother to build, to our tolerance for difficulty, to what we remember, and to the way we judge the world. He treats AI less as a tool upgrade tha...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi welcomes Chris Skinner for an unconventional episode: not the presentation of a business manual, but a financial thriller. In Diary of a Ponzi Scheme — the first novel in Skinner’s Pulp Finction series — a broke operator launches a fund invested in stablecoins, crypto, and digital currencies, then pulls his wealthy circle into a scam that only works as long as new money keeps arriving. Skinner explains why he moved into fiction: to smuggle how finance works into a s...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Ritavan, author of the new book The System Gambit—a rigorous guide to the one strategic move that most investors and operators never make. They say companies get disrupted because they miss the signals. This is technically true, but many are not missing the signals. They are reading them correctly and responding rationally, and the rational response is the trap. Every benchmark they hit is proof that they are excellent at a game whose rules have already ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Driss Temsamani, author of the new book The Agentic Bank—a practitioner’s roadmap that shows how finance is shifting from platforms to intelligence. Temsamani, a three-decade banking leader and advisor to central banks and regulators, explains how AI-powered agents are bringing autonomy, reasoning, and collaboration into the heart of modern institutions, creating the AI-native financial institution where humans and intelligent agents work side by side. T...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Pal Krogdahl, author of Rip Out the Core—an essential guide for anyone wrestling with the stubborn realities of banking core modernization. Despite massive investments, many institutions still face overruns, delays, and outcomes that leave them no stronger than before. Sparked by a flooded kitchen that perfectly mirrored the chaos of real-world banking transformation programs, Pal’s book shifts the lens from pure technology to organization, showing that ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Prof. Dr. Ingird Vasiliu-Feltes, author of the new book The Art of Quantum: Statecraft, Sovereignty, Strategy—a timely strategic manifesto that reimagines classical principles of foresight and power (inspired by The Art of War) for the quantum age. As demographic shifts concentrate workforce and economic power in emerging economies by 2030, and technology giants increasingly rival nation-states, the very meaning of sovereignty is being rewritten. Ingird ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Jean-Philippe Desbiolles author of the updated book AI Will Be What You Make of It (originally published in 2019). Desbiolles argues that AI’s impact on banking and society will ultimately be determined by human choices, not technology. He introduces the concept of a “co-era,” in which AI functions as a collaborative co-worker rather than a simple tool, requiring humans to develop “let-go” behaviors while staying in control.The discussion explores how ba...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Selim Yazıci and Michael Salmony, authors of “Tokenization of Money; from fiat currencies to stable coins”. They deliver a comprehensive, multi-perspective analysis of tokenised money by assembling leading insights from central banks, commercial banks, fintechs, academics, regulators, platform builders and service providers across all major geographies in a rare combination of academic rigour and highly practical, immediately applicable guidance for fina...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi speaks with Dr. Balakrishnan Mahadevan (Balu), author of Designing Change: My Journey Through India’s Digital Payments Transformation. India’s digital payments have grown from under one billion transactions annually around 2010 to over 225 billion by March 2025—a more than 200-fold increase. Through his unique lens as a former banking technology leader, COO of NPCI during its critical scaling years, and World Bank advisor, Balu offers a rare insider’s account of how...

In this episode, author Dimitrios Salampasis joins host Paolo Sironi to introduce the Research Handbook on FinTech, a global scholarly effort to understand finance’s radical transformation. Two decades ago, finance meant traditional banks and centralised institutions. Today, digital payments, AI, blockchain, and central bank digital currencies are rewriting the rules. Dimitrios explains why this handbook arrives at the perfect moment: FinTech has matured from startup hype into core infrastructur...

In this episode, author Daniel Trabucchi joins host Paolo Sironi to explore strategies for legacy companies to embrace platform business models amid dominance by tech-native giants. Drawing from his book The Digital Phoenix Effect, he outlines a pragmatic approach for traditional firms to foster innovation through platform thinking, preserving core strengths like customers, suppliers, data, and expertise. Unlike startup-focused literature, this conversation emphasizes internal transformation in ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi dives into “Beyond Resilience: Patterns of Success in Fintech and Digital Transformation” with author Leda Glyptis. At the heart of the conversation are probing questions: Is success in fintech truly pattern-based? Can the journey of building new banks or digital services, whether from scratch or within established organizations, be predictable enough to replicate? And if patterns exist, are they within our reach to emulate? Drawing from candid interviews with lead...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews Aiden McCullen to explore his book UNDISRIPTABLE, a book that brings order to the chaos we are experiencing in personal and corporate lofe to the acceleration of the innovation life cycle. While we cannot see into the future, there are repeatable patterns we can understand learning from homo sapiens to CEOs, from hunters to the jelly fish as a way to master the infinite loop of reinvention. Aiden demystifies the principles of change through a blend of ana...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews April Rudin and Nick Rice to explore their new book Wealth Management with a Difference, an essential guide for advisors and firms navigating an era of unprecedented wealth transfer, where millennials, Gen Z, and women are poised to inherit trillions while technology revolutionizes financial services. From understanding demographic trends, like serving tech-savvy younger clients and empowered women, to mastering retirement planning, wealthtech tools, and ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews Ritavan to explore his book Data Impact: How legacy businesses Save, Leverage, Align, Simplify, Optimize, and Grow to WIN. The SLASOG framework is a methodology designed to empower non-digital native businesses in harnessing their unique strengths for scalable, data-driven growth. Drawing from first-principles and empirically validated strategies, they discuss actionable insights to align teams on value creation, streamline processes, and accelerate inno...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews Sangeet Paul Choudary, author of Reshuffle: Who Wins When AI Restacks the Knowledge Economy. They discuss how AI is set to transform the global economy and company operations by redistributing power among key players. Sangeet’s research delves into four central tensions: workers versus their software tools, tool providers versus the companies that purchase them, consolidating businesses versus the industries they disrupt, and empowered individuals versus ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi interviews Kevin Govender, author of “The Rise of the Sharing Economy”. Together, they discuss the sharing economy—a concept that Time magazine named one of the “Ten ideas that will change the world” in 2011, and which has since grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry. Kevin breaks down the evolution of sharing platforms, key consumer trends, and alternative business models. These insights empower us to view access as a powerful cultural and socio-economic force ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi sits down with Rik Coeckelbergs, author of “A New Ethos in Banking”. They discuss how change is impacting banking and the industry’s reputation, exploring what a new ethos in banking should look like, and, more importantly, the needed contributions from the industry to the road ahead. Rik’s book guides decision-makers in a new direction, a positive alternative to the status quo. It’s an urgent call to action, with practical and relevant insights to improve a bank’s ...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi sits down with Patrick McConnell, author of “Digital Money: Operational Risks and the Threats to Operational Resilience”. They discuss the far-reaching impacts of emerging types of digital money upon financial institutions’ operational risk and resilience profiles. Many new operational risks could potentially arise as digital money innovations are integrated with existing systems. In addition to helping to manage existing risks, operational risk management (ORM) gro...

In this episode, Paolo Sironi sits down with Cindy Anderson and Anthony Marshsall, the authors of the “The ROI of Thoughts Leadership” to discuss how business research can help financial institutions to navigate the thought leadership world and make the best informed business decisions. And it’s a good read for all companies willing to invest in thought leadership but looking for the most compelling rational to build their business case. GUEST SOCIAL MEDIA Cindy Anderson – https://www.linkedin....

There is no lack of hype around artificial intelligence. We have only begun to scratch the surface of what this powerful technology can do. While tech and financial services become more intertwined, cutting through the noise has become more difficult but also more crucial. In this episode, Paolo Sironi sits down with Theodora Lau, the author of the “Banking on (Artificial) Intelligence” to discuss how AI is poised to advancing innovation, to creating efficiencies, and enhancing productivity whi...

Generative AI is revolutionizing the workplace, but how can managers harness its full potential beyond just automation? In this episode, Paolo Sironi sits down with Elisa Farri and Gabriele Rosani, the authors of the “Harvard Business Review Guide to Generative AI for Managers”. They explore how leaders can use AI as a strategic partner in problem-solving, innovation, and decision-making. They discuss practical applications and real-world case studies about how to leverage AI as a co-thinker to ...

Paolo Sironi meets Jason Mikula, author of “Banking as a Service: Opportunities, Challenges and Risks of New Banking Business Models”. BaaS is a game changer in the financial services sector, radically transforming both how consumers experience financial products and the business models delivering them. In this conversation, Jason cuts through the hype to provide a measured overview of BaaS, helping us to demystify a complex evolving field and understand its key opportunities, challenges and ri...

Paolo Sironi meets Ronit Ghose, who runs the Future of Finance team in Citi’s thought leadership unit “Citi Global Insights”, and is the author of “Future Money: Fintech, AI and Web 3”. The world of money is rapidly changing, but what does it all really mean? Paolo discusses some book insights with Ronit, who brings technical topics to vivid life via narrative deep dives into selected founders and their companies. Spanning multiple geographies from London to Lagos, via Ahmedabad, Dubai, Hong Ko...