Reimagining Capital Markets: Executive Vision, Data Innovation and Go-to-Market Excellence

The financial services industry is undergoing a profound transformation and nowhere is this more evident than in Capital Markets. In a recent webinar I hosted for FIS Capital Markets, industry leaders explored how data innovation, AI-driven insights, and strategic partnerships are reshaping the future of financial services. Central to this evolution is the collaboration between FIS and Snowflake, whose AI Data Cloud™ is powering a new era of agility, compliance, and performance across the capital markets lifecycle.

This blog features insights from the recent conversation I hosted with Tony Warren (Head of FIS Capital Markets Enterprise Strategy), Jason Baldesare (Head of FIS Capital Markets Solution Strategic), Patrick Donohue (Head of FIS Capital Markets Data + AI Innovation), and Rob Hubert (Snowflake Account Executive), each offering a unique perspective on how integrated platforms like the FIS Compliance Suite and Snowflake’s single data architecture are unlocking liquidity, streamlining regulatory reporting, and enabling smarter investment decisions. Check it out:

Capital Markets 1.0 → 2.0 → 3.0: A Strategic Evolution

Kicking off the discussion, Tony Warren framed the evolution of Capital Markets in three distinct phases. Capital Markets 1.0 was characterized by siloed, best-of-breed solutions tailored to specific functions. This gave way to Capital Markets 2.0, a modernization phase focused on cloud migration and platform optimization. Today, we’ve entered Capital Markets 3.0—a new era defined by SaaS-based ecosystems, open data architectures, and advanced AI capabilities.

Tony emphasized clients expect seamless, near real-time data access across the money lifecycle—from money at rest (banking), to money in motion (payments and treasury), to money at work (investments and lending). FIS is uniquely positioned to deliver on this vision, offering integrated platforms that eliminate silos and enable end-to-end financial operations. The shift toward agentic AI, robotic process automation, and collaborative innovation is not just theoretical—it’s already being implemented across FIS’s ecosystem.

Market Trends and Expectations: Laying the Foundation for Innovation

Building on Tony’s vision, Jason Baldesare highlighted the importance of foundational modernization. He noted that many organizations have invested heavily in cloud and SaaS architectures, and that those that haven’t are finding it increasingly difficult to leverage emerging technologies like AI and advanced analytics. The pace of innovation is staggering, and the financial commitment reflects this urgency. For example, Bank of America is spending $4 billion in 2025 alone on AI and data initiatives—a figure that underscores the scale of transformation across the industry.

Jason also pointed to a shift in how organizations are applying these technologies. While early use cases focused on internal efficiency and productivity, there is now a growing emphasis on top-line growth. AI is being used not just to streamline operations, but to attract new customers, generate revenue, and enter new markets. A recent FIS-Oxford study revealed that new client acquisition and revenue generation are among the fastest-growing benefits of AI adoption, signaling a broader strategic pivot in how this technology is leveraged.

Data + Innovation: Building the Agentic Future

Turning to the innovation landscape, Patrick Donohue traced the trajectory of AI from experimentation to execution, and now to the rise of agentic systems. He noted that while data modernization was a hot topic in 2018–2019, it has now become table stakes due to the rapid advancement of AI. FIS’ continued investment in cloud and data strategy has positioned it to help clients fully capitalize on these developments.

Patrick introduced Treasury GPT, a newly launched AI-powered support tool embedded within FIS’s Treasury and Risk Manager Integrity Edition. This solution integrates large language models directly into the workflow, offering treasurers a one-stop shop for product configuration, information retrieval, and industry best practices. It represents a significant step toward embedding AI into core financial operations and sets the stage for more agentic solutions that will redefine how financial applications are built and used.

FIS + Snowflake Partnership: Unlocking Speed and Scale

Rob Hubert emphasized that the partnership between FIS and Snowflake is more than a technology alignment—it’s a strategic enabler of innovation across the capital markets ecosystem. Over five years of collaboration, FIS has built a robust data infrastructure on Snowflake’s AI Data Cloud™, allowing for faster time-to-market, reduced operational costs, and enhanced access to previously siloed or unstructured data.

This foundation has empowered FIS to modernize its product portfolio, embedding AI and ML capabilities into workflows that support fraud detection, risk analytics, and predictive customer insights. Rob highlighted how Snowflake’s platform allows FIS to move beyond legacy data delivery methods—like secure FTP and static dashboards—toward real-time, natural language interfaces that democratize data access and accelerate decision-making.

“The strong foundation that's been laid by Capital Markets has been phenomenal, and given them a great platform on which they can start capitalizing more and more on AI and ML capabilities… we're doing some exciting things together.” - Rob Hubert

He also underscored the partnership’s role in enabling rapid innovation: Snowflake’s deep engagement with FIS teams has made it possible to turn ideas into production-ready solutions with unprecedented speed. This level of close collaboration is helping FIS meet rising client expectations while staying ahead of regulatory and operational challenges.

Want to watch the full Webinar or check out our FIS+Snowflake Partnership Flyer?

The FIS+Snowflake Partnership is redefining what’s possible in Capital Markets — unlocking agility, scalability, and intelligence across the entire financial lifecycle. To explore these insights in greater depth, watch the full webinar recording here: https://share.vidyard.com/watch/LTjRsNgHqGuBWPfUmgdZUm  

If you’re interested a quicker overview of the impact and benefits of this collaboration, check out our FIS-Snowflake Partnership Flyer: https://image.showcaseemail.fisglobal.com/lib/fe3311747364047c721071/m/1/8891f2bd-bc09-442a-8a65-f567e666057c.pdf