Montreal’s billionaire Desmarais family has come up with a novel approach to fend off the technology startups that threaten its financial services empire: Bring the enemies in and invite them to attack.

That alone is no guarantee of a successful transformation, according to Robert Smythe, a Toronto-based analyst with tech research firm International Data Corp. Canada. The real challenge is to figure out how to use technologies like artificial intelligence and biometrics to seamlessly offer the services people expect from companies like Great-West and IGM. On that front, Power may not be ahead of other major financial institutions, he said.“While investing in fintech companies gives you some exposure to the fintech world and might be financially lucrative — if one of them hits a home run — it does not grow internal fintech expertise,” Smythe said in an email.

Source: Power renaissance: Desmarais empire cozies up to tech startup enemies |