In business, it’s easy to do the popular thing and follow suit with others in your industry. It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in, there’s always a segment of the market that gets ignored for various reasons.
Usually, the excuse is, “We’ve never done it that way before,” or, “We always do it this way.” However, this blinds us from missed opportunities and untapped markets that can be a win-win situation.
An example of this is providing banking services to Money Services Businesses (MSBs). These are businesses that offer services like check-cashing, foreign currency exchange services, money orders, travelers’ checks, and more. Somehow over the years, businesses like these have received a negative reputation. It’s unfortunate because they are a significant benefit to the population of people they serve.
For some of our neighbors, having a bank account is a luxury, and check cashing establishments give them easy access to their hard-earned money. Some just prefer to use these services instead of using traditional banking services. There is a segment of the population that will always choose to do business this way.
While many banks and other financial institutions turn their noses up at MSBs because “we’ve never done it that way,” some companies are using these services to their advantage. Surety Bank and our MSB customers are some of those companies. Surety provides back-end banking support to these customers who offer these services to consumers and businesses. The services include on-site check cashing, bill payments, and money-transfer services. Many of our customers who offer these services are convenience stores however, larger companies such as Walmart are making significant investments in MSBs. Fintechs are also getting involved in these markets.
So what can we learn from these large companies like Walmart when it comes to their investment in money services? One important thing to acknowledge is that services that benefit unbanked or under-banked don’t have to be strictly altruistic. After all, we’re all in the business of making money. These money services businesses enable companies to service a clientele they may not normally have access to while also providing the services they need.
When so many other companies have turned their backs on check cashing and other money services, it has paid off for companies like Walmart to worry less about appearing high brow. When I moved Surety into the Money Services Business there was push back from people who didn’t have the vision for how this change could positively impact our company.
Whatever line of business you are in, a willingness to find creative solutions to industry changes may just be the thing that sets you apart from your competitors.
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