The Disappearing Bank

Brief: Banks are increasingly replaceable. "Embedded finance" makes it easy to deliver financial services in context. Over time, that may result in money gravitating towards influencer-run financial institutions. This could have significant ramifications for how society manages its surplus.

The point is context — by abstracting a core function and delivering it in situ, value is created. That is achieved by removing friction or utilizing unique data. Shopify is the canonical example. In recent years, the e-commerce platform has moved beyond integrating Stripe to offer a range of embedded products, including merchant lending that uses ... See more

Rather than interpreting fintech's job as bringing Old World institutions online, embedded finance modularizes financial functions. Rather than directly involving a bank, payments can be made across the web through embedded tools like Stripe, Adyen, PayPal, and Square.

Embedded finance frees the former from the latter. In the process, products with existing customer bases may benefit.

"Banking is necessary," Bill Gates once said, "banks are not."

Perhaps we will swipe the Joe Rogan card to receive cashback on podcast hosting, collect an Addison Rae loan to finance film school, cover our psychiatric appointment with a Goop mental health insurance policy, or store our savings in a Jon Favreau/PSA account.