The story quotes Jo Ann Barefoot as saying: “That’s the nature of the change underway in finance: It’s evolving slowly in plain sight, but has entered into an exponential, ‘hockey-stick’ acceleration driven by the exponential growth of technology in all sectors.”

In general, I agree with the assessment that Gartner’s projection is “directionally correct,” but is too severe — the real world won't be so black and white. If perhaps the caveat was "four of five legacy banks would be unrecognizably different in 2030" that would be something I could subscribe to. After all, dinosaurs aren't really gone. They're just birds...

Technology of today is disruptive, and its growth exponential. Nevertheless, it is growth, not elimination. Without doubt, established financial institutions need to adapt and change, and they are looking for ways to do so. Granted, not always succesfully, but by launching their own 'speedboats' they are succesfully testing the waters. These fintechs have the best of both worlds - startup agility and the expertise of the incumbents.

No matter how exciting new challengers are, an established player has a massive customer base, a strong balance sheet, data, and decades to build trust. The Financial Brand is certainly right that this is a survival game, but I believe we should give more credit to banks that have been around for this long.