Frontier Economics

Frontier Economics is a renowned economics consultancy, which provides analytical expertise and creative problem-solving services to businesses, governments and communities.

Our services extend across Europe with offices in Berlin, Brussels, Cologne, Dublin, London, Madrid, and Paris.

Analytical services for the international finance services sector

Frontier Economics works with some of the world’s best-known institutions such as banks, insurers, asset managers, regulators, payment systems, pension providers and fintechs.

We advise on commercial and regulatory decisions across retail, small / medium enterprises (SMEs), and corporate and wholesale markets. Our advice is grounded in economics, supported by a practical understanding of commercial strategy, regulatory and policy priorities, behavioural science, and competitive dynamics.

Our solutions cover all major product areas, channels and corporate functions, with recent projects comprising:

Pricing and proposition design
Behavioural analytics
Embedding behavioural economics thinking within regulatory, risk, product and legal teams
Competitive strategies and innovation in light of Open Banking
Regulatory risk assessments and conduct risk management
Competition inquiries and regulatory reviews
Support on commercial litigation and disputes

Open Banking regulations

With Open Banking regulation across Europe, the retail banking sector can expect substantial change. Regulators are now stressing ‘data standards’, ‘third-party access’, ‘user experience’ and ‘application protocol interfaces (APIs)’.

To help financial services providers from large retail banks to new fintechs mitigate risk and seize opportunities in Open Banking, we help our clients ask and answer critical questions such as:

What are the biggest risks and opportunities in our business model?
Who will be our future competitors and how can we win?
How are our customers changing their behaviour in an open banking world?
Which new capabilities and assets do we need to succeed?
How should we change our regulatory processes to comply with new rules?

A number of the notable issues we’ve recently worked on include business model adaptation, income and profit and loss (P&L) risk analysis, payment propositions and data analytics strategies.

Fintech and innovation services

Frontier Economics’ innovation work focuses on finding and retaining a competitive advantage, ranging from new fintech entrants to innovation personnel of major financial institutions.

We supply advice and information regarding the behaviour of customers and competitors. To achieve this, we test new business models and propositions, assess the competitive environment, and bring behavioural economics into product design. We also advise and guide clients through financial services regulation and policy design.

We have recently helped clients develop technologies such as aggregation, identity services, robo-advice, mobile wallets and digital passports.

Forward-looking public policies

Frontier Economics guides clients on how government policy changes may affect their business and what to do as a result. We are in the middle of the evolving policy landscape at both national and EU levels, including:

Implementation of PSD2
Service digitisation and robo-advice
Long-term savings landscape
Personal current accounts and overdraft pricing
Potential impact of Brexit
Lessons of behavioural economics for policy

We also work directly with government departments and regulators, as well as assisted clients with issues such as the UK’s payday lending price cap, the economic impact of venture capital and private equity across Europe and the potential impact of Brexit on the industry.

Regulation and reform advisory services

Regulation affects every aspect of how financial services companies operate, and there are many bodies to consider, often simultaneously. In the UK, this includes the Bank of England, the Competition and Markets Authority, the Financial Conduct Authority, the Payment Services Regulator, the Pensions Regulator, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the European Commission.

Frontier Economics offers a deep understanding of how markets work and how regulators approach them.

We provide strategic advice on regulatory engagement and branding, support in responding to market studies and thematic reviews, as well as assess the impact of regulation on business models.