Klaus Mueller: Experience with mobile wallets made telecoms more cautious in partnering with fintech

Partnerships between telecommunications companies and the fintech sector are possible, but they also come with certain concerns, Bakcell CEO Klaus Mueller said during the panel discussion "Fintech, Telecommunications, and Banking – Exploring Synergies Between Industries" at the Fifth INMerge Innovation Summit organized by PASHA Holding.

According to Report, he noted that the key to successful cooperation is a common language and clear understanding of each side"s objectives.

"A few years ago, mobile wallets were an example of such cooperation. Many users still think there is a built-in telecom component, since transactions are made via phone. But in reality, neither a mobile network nor a base station is required. In the early years, mobile wallets were indeed tied to telecoms, because payment data was stored on the SIM card. Later, however, Apple and Google changed the model, and the data began to be stored in the phone"s operating system. As a result, the value added by telecom companies was replaced," Mueller explained.

He stressed that telecom operators can be useful as incubators in the early stages of fintech projects, but their importance in areas such as AI and big data decreases as companies grow.

"After a certain stage, the contribution of telecoms in terms of AI modeling and big data becomes less significant. Of course, there may be other areas for cooperation, but in these particular segments, the role of telecom operators diminishes," the Bakcell CEO added.