From Automation to Augmentation – AI In Finance Awards 2025
Global Finance has launched its inaugural AI In Finance awards, spotlighting how artificial intelligence is evolving within the financial sector. While AI techniques like machine learning and statistical modeling have been part of finance for years, the spotlight now shifts to generative AI (GenAI), which is accelerating AI’s adoption and impact across the industry.
Financial institutions are moving beyond automating routine tasks. They are increasingly using AI to enhance human decision-making, enabling hyper-personalized services, proactive risk management, and new business opportunities in a digital-first environment.
Since the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, public awareness of AI has grown significantly. However, banks have taken a cautious approach, prioritizing risk management and governance to ensure AI technologies are deployed responsibly, securely, and ethically — all essential to maintaining trust and financial stability.
Ethics and Governance at DBS Bank
At DBS Bank in Singapore, any AI initiative begins by addressing three key questions:
- Can we use it? – Ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory standards.
- Should we use it? – Assessing ethical considerations via the PURE Framework for Data Ethics.
- How should we use it? – Focusing on fairness, transparency, explainability, and accountability.
“Balancing innovation with a strong ethical compass allows us to improve services for customers and employees,” says Nimish Panchmatia, chief data and transformation officer at DBS. He adds that responsible innovation remains critical and is guided by the bank’s core values and a Responsible Data Use framework.
Challenges and Opportunities in AI Adoption
Andy Schmidt, vice president and global industry lead for banking at CGI, highlights a key challenge: identifying AI use cases that go beyond existing automation, such as Robotic Process Automation. While fintechs often build on these foundations to streamline operations, banks face difficulties measuring the return on investment (ROI) for AI projects that improve processes without clear financial metrics.
When asked about ROI, a leading US bank admitted, “We don’t know. We know it’s better. We know it’s smoother. But we can’t truly calculate the ROI.” This uncertainty makes it harder to secure funding for experimental AI initiatives. Still, AI is reshaping banking by shifting institutions from purely transactional entities to intelligent, proactive financial partners.
How Winners Are Selected
The AI In Finance award winners are chosen based on entries submitted by financial institutions. Judges evaluate the impact, adoption, and creativity of AI applications in both systems and services. The selection panel includes experts from CGI, known for combining data science and machine learning to generate AI-driven insights and business models.
Global Finance editors handle the final financial evaluation of all winners.
Meet The Winners
- AI in Finance Awards 2025 | Consumer Banking
- AI in Finance Awards 2025 | Corporate Investing
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