Author: Gayathri

The Bank That Turned Bonds into Code Picture this: a global bank informs its institutional clients that their bond portfolios are no longer static entries in custodial ledgers, but rather programmable smart contracts on a blockchain. These assets can be transferred instantly, fractionalized, and embedded with logic for automated coupon payments or compliance checks. What once seemed like speculative blockchain hype is now quietly becoming embedded in the operating fabric of banking. In 2025, the narrative around tokenized assets in banking has shifted. The question is no longer whether tokenization will take hold, but how rapidly banks will industrialize it…

Beyond The Black 2025 in Las Vegas was more than another technology showcase; it was a defining moment for finance and accounting leaders. Hosted annually by BlackLine, a recognized leader serving the office of the CFO, the three-day event brought together over 1,500 finance professionals, partners, and industry stakeholders to explore the future of financial transformation. Tailored for finance and accounting leaders and their teams, BeyondTheBlack 2025 stood out by incorporating independent analyst perspectives this time. Divya Baranawal, VP Research & Principal Analyst at QKS Group, joined the event, highlighting the growing convergence between practitioner priorities and industry research. The…

The Death of the Digital Broker? Imagine purchasing a new car online. Within moments, insurance coverage for theft, accidents, and roadside assistance appears seamlessly as part of the checkout. The policy activates instantly. If an accident occurs, the car’s sensors trigger a claim, contractors are dispatched automatically, and settlement happens within hours. No phone calls. No paper trails. No human bottlenecks. This is the direction in which insurtech is heading in 2025. The once-dominant model of digital brokers and aggregators, middlemen that simplified price comparisons, is giving way to something larger and more integrated. We are witnessing the rise of…

The commercial loan origination systems (CLOS) market has shifted sharply between 2023 and 2024. What was once a race for digitization has become a contest of orchestration: who can embed AI, automate decisioning, and interoperate at scale. The SPARK Matrix™ reflects this change by rewarding vendors that went beyond point-automation to deliver composable, AI-operated lending journeys with faster time-to-value. In 2023, the market clustered around digital transformation basics: document management, automated spreading, and workflow automation. By 2024, leaders distinguished themselves by operationalizing AI models, building unified platforms, and moving to cloud-native microservices. Vendors that stagnated on legacy deployments saw their…

The Accounts Receivable (AR) applications market transformed between 2024 and 2025. Vendors are no longer competing on invoice automation alone but on orchestrating outcomes with operational AI, predictive analytics, and embedded finance. The 2025 SPARK Matrix™ captures this inflection point: Leaders doubled down on AI-first strategies and payment orchestration, while Contenders and Aspirants differentiated through modularity, ecosystem reach, and cost-effective deployments. From 2024 to 2025, several vendors rose into the Leader quadrant by demonstrating AI-driven cash flow visibility and embedded payment orchestration. Others retained position but enhanced depth through ERP interoperability and composability. At the same time, regional and integration…

The Accounts Payable Automation (APA) market has moved decisively from digitization to intelligent orchestration. The 2025 SPARK Matrix™ shows that leadership is now determined by operational AI, compliance resilience, and embedded payment orchestration. Vendors that matured their AI-driven touchless processing and regulatory capabilities advanced strongly, while others lost ground due to weak adoption, limited regional scope, or dependency on legacy workflows. The year-on-year shifts are striking. Medius climbed from contender to leader by integrating payments at scale. MHC rose from emerging leader to strong leader with its configurable, AI-powered workflows. Stampli ascended into the leader zone by proving its AI…

The open banking intermediaries market has shifted from data aggregation utilities to full-scale orchestration engines. Between 2023 and 2024, leadership was redefined by vendors that embedded payments, broadened interoperability, and accelerated time-to-value through orchestration and AI-driven enrichment. In 2023, leaders were defined by aggregation depth, regulatory readiness, and multi-use-case support. By 2024, the criteria shifted toward operational AI, payments initiation with variable recurring payments, orchestration across ecosystems, and end-to-end compliance readiness. Vendors that added value-added services and improved developer ecosystems climbed; those reliant on traditional aggregation fell behind. What the SPARK Matrix Measures The SPARK Matrix benchmarks vendors across: Technology…

Synthetic Identity Fraud in Banking: A Humanized View of the Crisis Imagine being a compliance officer at a regional bank. An account that sailed through your KYC checks six months ago suddenly defaults on multiple loans. Investigators trace the details and discover the applicant never existed. The passport was generated by AI, the selfie was a deepfake composite, and the contact details were stitched from stolen data. The bank has lent money to a ghost. Now add another scenario: a mid-level employee receives a call from “the CEO” demanding an urgent wire transfer. The voice matches perfectly, but it is…

Picture this: it’s 7:42 p.m. on a Friday, and your phone buzzes with a message that looks eerily like your bank. The logo is crisp, the grammar flawless, and even the tone feels “just like” your relationship manager. Except it isn’t. It’s a deepfake-driven scam built with generative AI tools that cost less than a dinner out and it’s about to drain your account via a real-time payment rail. For a fraud investigator, this scenario is no longer hypothetical. It is the new baseline. Fraud is moving faster, feeling smarter, and sounding more human than ever before. What Is Agentic…

The life and annuity (L&A) insurance industry is at a critical inflection point, moving beyond mere digital transformation toward a more agile, composable, and data-driven operating model. In the last year, the focus has shifted from simply automating legacy processes to enabling rapid product innovation and personalized customer experiences. This evolution has redefined what it means to be a technology leader, pushing vendors to adopt more open, modular architectures and operationalize advanced intelligence. The SPARK Matrix is a strategic performance assessment and ranking of key market participants, measuring them on two core axes: Technology Excellence evaluates the core product capabilities,…