Speaking at a Reuters event in Sydney, ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott said there will definitely be a role for robo-advice in the Australian financial services sector.
“We’ve already looked at it. The question for us is: is that something I think we can do better than anyone else? I’m not convinced,” Mr Elliott said.
“It is something we’ve experimented with and we’ve done the trials. But I’m not sure that it’s the thing that will differentiate ANZ and really set us out from the pack.”
Speaking about fintech more broadly, Mr Elliott said the threat from technology start-ups doesn’t “keep him awake at night” – although he admitted that he does “worry about it”.
However, the opportunity for Australian fintech start-ups is less substantial than it is for other fintech companies overseas, he said.
“The market here is pretty efficient, so you don’t get the kind of glaring inefficiencies that you have, even in parts of the US, that make it a much more attractive place for disruption,” Mr Elliott said.
“Having said that, there’s a lot of really good thinking happening in fintech. We think there’s an opportunity for us to partner with them and work with them.”
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