The Thinner the Table, the Smarter the Bank with Riikka Laine-Tolonen from S-Pankki

<p>In this episode of Fintech Daydreaming, Ville and Pål are joined by Riikka Laine-Tolonen, CEO of S-Pankki: a bank that started from grocery shopping and somehow ended up managing billions.</p><p>Riikka walks us through the origin story of S-Pankki - born from a retail cooperative, supercharged by the famous S-bonus, and launched just in time for the 2008 financial crisis (great timing, obviously). Fast forward 18 years, and it’s now one of Finland’s fastest-growing banks with 3.4 million customers.</p><p>We get into:</p><p>.- Why building a bank on top of a loyalty program actually works</p><p>.- The reality of being a “challenger” bank… with full regulatory baggage</p><p>.- The Handelsbanken Finland acquisition and what it unlocked</p><p>.- And how S-Pankki is quietly moving into wealth management and private banking</p><p><br></p><p>Which raises the obvious question: can a “bonus bank” really win over high-net-worth clients?</p><p>That leads us into:</p><p>.- Whether S-Pankki is Finland’s closest thing to a super app</p><p>.- Why combining banking, retail, and daily life might actually work here (and nowhere else)</p><p>.- And what happens when your future bank might be talking to your AI instead of you</p><p><br></p><p>Along the way, we also learn:</p><p>.- That your importance as a banking customer can be measured by the thickness of the oak table in front of you</p><p>.- That private banking might be less about fancy offices and more about smart digital advice</p><p>.- And that worrying about “long answers” is… not a problem on this podcast</p><p><br></p><p>If you’ve ever wondered what happens when a loyalty program meets banking ambition, this is the episode for you.</p><p><br></p><p>Listen now - and don’t forget to check your bonus balance.</p><p><br></p><p>Episode hosted by Pål Krogdahl &amp; Ville Sointu</p><p>Episode produced and edited by Fintech Daydreaming</p><p><br></p><p>- Email us on Hello@FintechDaydreaming.com</p><p>- Fintech Daydreaming home page - https://www.FintechDaydreaming.com</p><p>- Fintech Daydreaming on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/fintech-daydreaming</p><p>- Pål Krogdahl - https://www.linkedin.com/in/krogdahl/</p><p>- Ville Sointu - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ville-sointu-54682b/</p>