Fintechs a major surprise
Just 20 years ago, CEOs could never have predicted that their greatest competition would come from a tech firm like Google
In 1997, CEOs were classified "cyber savvy" in a survey if they had logged onto the Internet 10 days or more in a month. It is hilarious now, but CEOs back then could never have imagined how ubiquitous the Internet would become or how prolific technological innovation would be. "Twenty years ago we would’ve said in our business that the banks are a threat or the medical schemes are a threat. We certainly wouldn’t have said Google is a threat; no-one would have spotted these fintechs," says Ian Kirk, CEO of Sanlam, who in 1997 was the head of an insurer later bought by Liberty. In its survey of 377 CEOs that year, PwC found that 20% of them believed e-commerce would completely reshape competition in their industries, while 59% said it would have a "significant impact". Fast-forward 20 years and one-third of the 1,379 CEOs interviewed in PwC’s latest global CEO survey say technology has indeed had a significant impact over the past two decades, but believe more is still to come. Nearl...
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