The birthday present I hope goes viral

People don’t generally react well to new things. For me, it’s turning 60 yesterday, although the free bus pass I receive does lessen the pain somewhat.

And we’re all experiencing something quite new at the moment. Newsfeeds, social media and conversations have been dominated by the spread of the Covid-19 virus, infecting 100,000+ people worldwide with no sign of stopping. And, in the last two weeks, it has wiped out global equity value faster than the global crisis of 2008.

We can’t stop the Covid-19 and we don’t yet know what impact it will have because it’s so new, not even the extent to which it will negatively affect the health of our population. But it’s not good news, whichever way you look at it.

Conferences in many sectors are being postponed or cancelled. So I’ve been reflecting on what this means for our annual PAY360 conference, which takes place in less than two weeks, and for payments in general.

The Economist at its best

When reading the Economist last week, I saw that it did what The Economist does best. It cut through the noise. Drew sensible conclusions. And made some practical recommendations.

These recommendations should not be a surprise to those in payments, as I will explain below. First, spread the word. Authorities should issue clear, unambiguous information and guidance as soon as they can that don’t sugar-coat the truth. Who is most vulnerable, what to look out for and who should do what.

Second, slow the spread. I wish I had gone into the hand sanitiser business, because everyone will soon be carrying a small bottle of gel. And parents of small boys may at last have found a way to dissuade them from picking their noses.

Third, prepare systems for what is to come. Plan now for high volumes of hospital visitors and a run on gowns, masks, gloves and drugs.

Payments at its best

So why shouldn’t those in payments be surprised by this advice? Because a virus is like payments-related fraud. Fraud of one type or another is always with us. Fraud evolves and mutates. It requires us to adapt our defences and react accordingly. If we were faced with a new form of fraud, we would not panic. We would not shut down the payments system or stop people from buying things. We certainly would not stoke up a groundswell of fear.

Instead we would just follow the approach recommended by The Economist. Spread the word to make sure that those at risk of fraud know what to look out for and what action to take. Adapt our defences and behaviour to slow the spread – strong customer authentication, confirmation of payee, for example. And then prepare our financial systems for what is to come, such as offered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

UK Government at its best

Speaking at the British Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care said, ‘The science on large events is that there is no material clinical benefit or epidemiological benefit to cancelling events, so long as people take the public health measures that I am sure you have all hear of – wash your hands and if you have a cough or sneeze, catch it.’ In light of this advice, we are advocating that we . . .

Keep calm and get together

So my wish on this, the day of my 60th birthday, is that everyone in our community comes together on March 17th in London for PAY360. My team is preparing thoroughly to manage the risks in a sensible way, and you can be sure we’ll be well-stocked with tissues and hand-wash. You can spend a stimulating day learning from others and our band of world class speakers. Exploring how we are going to adapt to the risks of financial crime while exploiting the many opportunities to profit in payments. And helping shape the world for the better by making payments work for everyone.

If you haven’t registered yet or know of someone who might benefit from accessing the PAY360 promise, here is my birthday gift to you: two 100% discounted delegate tickets. Just go online and register using the code ‘BIRTHDAY’ to save ￡490 on each place. See https://www.pay360conference.com/register/ for more details.

In the words of the Greek philosopher, Epictetus, “It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”

Tony Craddock

Director General

Emerging Payments Association