Janina Harasim

Money creation is one of the most fundamental yet frequently misunderstood processes within modern economies. Contrary to the traditional perception that banks merely act as intermediaries between savers and borrowers, contemporary banking theory emphasizes the active role of commercial banks in creating money through the extension of credit. This presentation explores the mechanisms of money creation in the modern banking system, focusing on the interaction between commercial banks, central banks, financial markets, and regulatory institutions. Particular attention is devoted to the process by which bank lending generates new deposits, thereby expanding the money supply beyond the stock of physical currency issued by central banks. The presentation examines the theoretical foundations of endogenous money creation and contrasts them with the traditional money multiplier approach. It further discusses the role of central bank policies, including reserve requirements, interest rate management, and quantitative easing programs, in influencing the volume and cost of credit within the economy. Additionally, the impact of post-crisis regulatory frameworks, such as Basel III liquidity and capital requirements, on banks’ capacity to create money is analyzed. From a practical perspective, the presentation highlights the implications of money creation for economic growth, inflation, financial stability, asset prices, and public debt management. It also addresses contemporary challenges arising from digitalization, fintech development, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and changing patterns of financial intermediation. By combining theoretical insights with real-world examples, the presentation provides a comprehensive understanding of how money is created in modern banking systems and why this process remains crucial for policymakers, financial institutions, businesses, and households. Understanding the dynamics of money creation is essential for evaluating monetary policy effectiveness and the broader functioning of contemporary financial systems.

Payment Features and Incentives as Drivers for Non-Cash Payments Usage – the Evidence from Poland

While there is a fast-growing number of studies on FinTech, the relationships between technology companies and banks have received only limited attention in the research literature. Most of the studies on FinTech-bank interactions conducted so far address the questions: why banks collaborate with FinTechs (reasons) and how they do it (forms of cooperation), whereas this paper aims at clarifying when the most likely form of their interaction is cooperation and when competition. To cover this cognitive gap, the conceptual framework to help explain which factors affect the type of interactions between technology companies and banks is presented in this paper. Based on extensive literature review and using the market-based approach, the external factors of the market position of banks and technology companies were examined. It was found that this position and therefore the basic type of interaction depends on the adoption level of FinTechs and BigTechs in individual countries/regions. The adoption of FinTechs and BigTechs turned out to be higher in EMDEs and lower in AEs, which makes it more likely that in the first group of countries tech companies would tend to serve as banks’ competitors, whereas in the second group they would rather collaborate with banks or choose the coopetition strategy. When analyzing internal factors, the resource-based approach and a slightly modified IO theory were applied. In this part, the strategic tool which enables the assessment of the extent to which assets, skills, and features of FinTechs, BigTechs and banks are complementary (which gives the rationale for cooperation) or substitutable (which gives the rationale for competition) was proposed. This study is a critical analysis based on desk research, that contributes to the existing literature by (1) providing a narrow definition of FinTech representing the subjective/institutional approach, (2) considering separately FinTechs and BigTechs, and (3) proposing the strategic tool which helps to assess comparative advantages of banks, FinTechs and BigTechs, and thus makes it easier to choose the most appropriate type of their interaction.

The rapid development of modern technology and the increasing number of FinTechs can bring new competition challenges to incumbents. First, the author identifies the most important technologies implemented in the financial sector, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, APIs, cloud computing, mobile technology and DLT. Next, she analyses BigTechs’ customer-centric platform-based business model and its impact on competition in the financial sector. The expansion of BigTechs into finance should lower the barriers to entry by reducing information and transaction costs, and thereby enhance financial inclusion. However, the long-term impact could be negative as BigTechs can exploit their market power to increase user switching costs and/or to exclude potential competitors. The impact of smaller FinTechs on competition seems to be more beneficial as they rather collaborate than compete with incumbents (especially with banks) while bank – FinTech alliances aim at improving the prospects and the market value of both FinTechs and banks.

During the last few decades, the banking market has changed significantly making banks face new challenges. Mobile technology development has had a powerful impact on all human activities including banking. Mobile technology has changed both the information and communication sharing, as well as customers’ market behaviour. All these changes should be taken into account in the process of searching for competitive advantage factors and designing banks’ business models. The purpose of the paper is to propose the framework for banks’ business model that incorporates using mobile technology and creating a competitive advantage. The foundation of this framework is based on theoretical considerations. The paper analyses contemporary business models used by banks, their value proposals and their relation to customers’ needs and expectations. The research highlights the routes for using mobile technology in the further development of banks’ business models from the perspective of the process of creating and delivering value for customers.

Rynek alternatywnych usług finansowych jest jednym z najszybciej rozwijających się segmentów sektora finansowego. W ciągu ostatnich kilku lat wartość dokonanych na tym rynku transakcji wzrosła sześciokrotnie. W tym samym czasie znacząco wzrosła również liczba finansowanych w ten sposób przedsięwzięć oraz podmiotów oferujących i korzystających z tego typu instrumentów. Tendencje rozwojowe występujące na rynku alternatywnych usług finansowych pozwalają przypuszczać, że w niedługim czasie tradycyjne instytucje finansowe będą musiały zacząć dostrzegać konkurencję ze strony tego sektora. Jako stosunkowo nowy segment rynek alternatywnych usług finansowych generuje też nowe zagrożenia. W artykule podjęto próbę przedstawienia taksonomii pojęcia alternatywnych usług finansowych, przedstawiono obserwowane w ostatnim czasie tendencje rozwojowe w zakresie ich sprzedaży oraz scharakteryzowano czynniki, które będą miały wpływ na jego dalszy rozwój.