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Digital Human: The Fourth Revolution Of Humanity Includes Everyone by Chris Skinner
The Blurb On The Back:
A financial expert explores the transformational power of the fourth age of humanity.
We are in the midst of a revolution of humanity. The impact of the digital revolution, creating the fourth age of humanity, is that we are all connected one-to-one in real time for the first time in history. Digital Humanoffers a much-needed exploration of how the digital age is affecting human and business relationships and offers guidance that shows how companies of all sizes can adapt to become forward-thinking digital businesses.
Digital Human explores the implications of the digitalisation for humanity, trade, commerce and our future. The mobile network is achieving the goal of eroding boundaries and inclusion of everyone. This digitalisation of our planet is bringing about a major transformation. Everyone on the planet will soon be included in the network and everyone on the planet will get the change to talk, trade and transact with everyone else in real time.
This book offers insight into a number of intriguing topics that stem from the digitalisation of humanity such as how bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are challenging government and control mechanisms and why the Chinese tech giants are more imaginative than their Western counterparts.
Chris Skinner also explores the rise of the most fundamental innovations in emerging markets and examines the challenge to govern a globalised world when we live in nation states. In addition, Skinner includes the first-ever in-depth English-language case study of Ant Financial and Alipay; the mobile wallet that aims to be used by over two billion humans.
Digital Human explains why the fourth revolution of humanity will include everyone, no matter where they live or how they live.
Chris Skinner is a financial markets commentator and former advisor to the White House and the World Bank. In this book he makes some interesting arguments about the future of technology and there’s an interesting case study of Ant Financial and Alipay but he simply down’t want to consider the dangers of the tech he evangelises here, which was a big negative for me - especially when he uses examples from China, where it is part of state control.
There is no doubting Skinner’s qualifications and connections within the fintech industry and he builds on ideas here that were first put forward in his book DIGITAL BANK. I haven’t read DIGITAL BANK and I think I would have probably got a little more out of this book had I done so as I would have been able to understand his historical arguments and viewpoints. That said, he does cross-refer back where relevant and does cite where he is cross-referring so it is easy to follow.
The book begins with a summary of different technological ages, including within the finance sector with a focus on how computing and the internet changed business practices and models. This provides a useful background - especially if, like me, you are new to the sector. Skinner is particularly strong when he talks about the problems that legacy banks face when trying to take on the advantages of the new technology (namely the cost and disruption caused by changing legacy systems). He is also very enthusiastic at the activities of entrants to the sector, albeit clear-eyed as to how they view themselves (i.e. more as tech companies than as finance companies) and makes some interesting points about how technology innovation has revolutionised access to financial products in developing countries.
Skinner is particularly keen on arguing that legacy banks should team up with fast moving rivals to open up banking systems - it’s a point that he comes back to again and again. However he was - to my mind - quite dismissive about concerns on this from a customer point of view, notably on security of customer data, pressurised sales techniques and liability in the event of insolvency. Where I really got nervous was when he talks about how finance services ties in with national services in China, which he is positively evangelical about even though there is growing evidence that it’s also used as a means of social control.
The book ends with case studies of Ant Financial and Alipay, which I found interesting in terms of the information that he gets out of the interviewees (who are all high level) and goes into how they handle going into overseas markets. However it is notable that Skinner doesn’t push back too much in terms of looking for negatives or potential downsides and there’s a certain amount of corporate spin on display there.
All in all, it’s an interesting book that does show the potential of fintech but the refusal to look for clouds around the sunny future left me feeling quite disquieted.
The Verdict:
Chris Skinner is a financial markets commentator and former advisor to the White House and the World Bank. In this book he makes some interesting arguments about the future of technology and there’s an interesting case study of Ant Financial and Alipay but he simply down’t want to consider the dangers of the tech he evangelises here, which was a big negative for me - especially when he uses examples from China, where it is part of state control.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
We are in the midst of a revolution of humanity. The impact of the digital revolution, creating the fourth age of humanity, is that we are all connected one-to-one in real time for the first time in history. Digital Humanoffers a much-needed exploration of how the digital age is affecting human and business relationships and offers guidance that shows how companies of all sizes can adapt to become forward-thinking digital businesses.
Digital Human explores the implications of the digitalisation for humanity, trade, commerce and our future. The mobile network is achieving the goal of eroding boundaries and inclusion of everyone. This digitalisation of our planet is bringing about a major transformation. Everyone on the planet will soon be included in the network and everyone on the planet will get the change to talk, trade and transact with everyone else in real time.
This book offers insight into a number of intriguing topics that stem from the digitalisation of humanity such as how bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are challenging government and control mechanisms and why the Chinese tech giants are more imaginative than their Western counterparts.
Chris Skinner also explores the rise of the most fundamental innovations in emerging markets and examines the challenge to govern a globalised world when we live in nation states. In addition, Skinner includes the first-ever in-depth English-language case study of Ant Financial and Alipay; the mobile wallet that aims to be used by over two billion humans.
Digital Human explains why the fourth revolution of humanity will include everyone, no matter where they live or how they live.
Chris Skinner is a financial markets commentator and former advisor to the White House and the World Bank. In this book he makes some interesting arguments about the future of technology and there’s an interesting case study of Ant Financial and Alipay but he simply down’t want to consider the dangers of the tech he evangelises here, which was a big negative for me - especially when he uses examples from China, where it is part of state control.
There is no doubting Skinner’s qualifications and connections within the fintech industry and he builds on ideas here that were first put forward in his book DIGITAL BANK. I haven’t read DIGITAL BANK and I think I would have probably got a little more out of this book had I done so as I would have been able to understand his historical arguments and viewpoints. That said, he does cross-refer back where relevant and does cite where he is cross-referring so it is easy to follow.
The book begins with a summary of different technological ages, including within the finance sector with a focus on how computing and the internet changed business practices and models. This provides a useful background - especially if, like me, you are new to the sector. Skinner is particularly strong when he talks about the problems that legacy banks face when trying to take on the advantages of the new technology (namely the cost and disruption caused by changing legacy systems). He is also very enthusiastic at the activities of entrants to the sector, albeit clear-eyed as to how they view themselves (i.e. more as tech companies than as finance companies) and makes some interesting points about how technology innovation has revolutionised access to financial products in developing countries.
Skinner is particularly keen on arguing that legacy banks should team up with fast moving rivals to open up banking systems - it’s a point that he comes back to again and again. However he was - to my mind - quite dismissive about concerns on this from a customer point of view, notably on security of customer data, pressurised sales techniques and liability in the event of insolvency. Where I really got nervous was when he talks about how finance services ties in with national services in China, which he is positively evangelical about even though there is growing evidence that it’s also used as a means of social control.
The book ends with case studies of Ant Financial and Alipay, which I found interesting in terms of the information that he gets out of the interviewees (who are all high level) and goes into how they handle going into overseas markets. However it is notable that Skinner doesn’t push back too much in terms of looking for negatives or potential downsides and there’s a certain amount of corporate spin on display there.
All in all, it’s an interesting book that does show the potential of fintech but the refusal to look for clouds around the sunny future left me feeling quite disquieted.
The Verdict:
Chris Skinner is a financial markets commentator and former advisor to the White House and the World Bank. In this book he makes some interesting arguments about the future of technology and there’s an interesting case study of Ant Financial and Alipay but he simply down’t want to consider the dangers of the tech he evangelises here, which was a big negative for me - especially when he uses examples from China, where it is part of state control.
Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.