“Digitalisation, long seen as an efficiency exercise, has become the new nervous system of financial management. Today’s imperative is different: anticipating risks, personalising services, strengthening customer relationships, and accelerating critical decision-making.” Frederico Moreira, Account Manager Financial Service at Glintt Next
For the past decade, the financial sector has kept a cautious eye on fintech companies — and with good reason. These new players have simplified processes, redesigned the customer relationship, and accustomed the market to quick, direct, and intuitive experiences. Many banks and insurers interpreted this shift as a threat to their historical position. However, the reality has changed: the increased value of data and the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) are creating a major opportunity for the financial sector.
The reason is simple. For the first time in many years, all organisations (large or small, traditional or emerging) are rethinking their strategy through the lens of AI‑driven digital transformation. Adoption is recent, knowledge is still uneven, and the real impact is only beginning. This places Portuguese financial institutions on a renewed competitive playing field.
Digitalisation, long viewed as an efficiency-driven exercise, has become the new nervous system of financial management. Today, the imperative is different: anticipating risks, personalising services, strengthening customer relationships, and accelerating critical decisions. According to Gartner, more than 70% of CFOs now lead areas such as data, AI, and digital strategy — confirming the structural nature of this shift.
Indeed, AI is already present in the sector, but its potential is far from fully explored. Assisted risk analysis, fraud detection, or liquidity optimisation are only the surface. The true competitive leap lies in the ability to anticipate customer needs, recommend actions, support real‑time decisions, and redefine the financial experience with a level of sophistication impossible to achieve through traditional processes alone.
However, this evolution requires trust — explainable, auditable, and supervised models. In a highly regulated sector, every decision can have systemic impact. It is not enough to adopt AI; it must be governed.
Naturally, there are structural challenges the sector cannot ignore: cybersecurity, now part of the financial infrastructure itself, and the shortage of hybrid talent. Professionals capable of understanding algorithms, programming, financial risk, and regulation simultaneously will be essential. This will be the challenge of the next decade.
In this context, it becomes clear that digital transformation is not a project to be completed, but a continuous shift in mindset. And paradoxically, it is this deep transformation that gives Portuguese financial institutions a renewed strategic opportunity. At a time when fintechs advance through extreme simplification, the traditional sector can respond with something more robust: intelligence applied to the customer, more informed decision‑makers, safer operations, and a truly personalised experience.
History does not offer many second chances. This time, AI is offering one. It is up to financial institutions to decide whether they seize it.
