Fintech is transforming banking through AI-powered lending and rapid expansion into underserved markets. But as algorithms make ever-faster financial decisions, regulators face the challenge of managing the risks without stifling innovation.

When it comes to banking I'm a conservative. I have been with the same South African bank since I got my first account while still a teenager.

I just never really had a strong reason to leave. I know plenty of people who actually find their banks incredibly frustrating and move around often. For a real-life demonstration of this just look at how much advertising banks do (thankfully, many of them advertise in traditional media - so long may it continue!).

But now of course the story of banking is all about fintech. The growth is just incredible. This morning the international fintech operator Optasia said in its interim results that its revenue was up by 58% and its Distributed Value by 46%.

It's getting a lot more customers, and it's doing that very very quickly. Part of this is about geographic expansion; It has moved into markets in Gabon and South Sudan while increasing its penetration in places like Pakistan and Indonesia.

I was intrigued by its default rate - it was just 1.3% during the period. This compares really favourably with FNB's WesBank operations. They reported last week that their default rate there was 1.05%. And this...