In a perfect world, small and mid-size businesses want a single platform to manage online and offline sales and payments seamlessly. Given their intense focus on the benefits of embedded finance, they also want payment systems tied directly to invoicing, accounting, and inventory. And, given tight cash flow, SMBs are keen for real-time settlement solutions that offer instant payouts. The panelists debate how small businesses are re-prioritizing digital payment options—credit and debt, mobile wallets, ACH and bank transfers, buy now, pay later, peer-to-peer payment apps, QR code-based payments, and stablecoins—to arrive at choices to meet their growing desire for low cost, easy to integrate, flexible payments across channels (online, mobile, in-store) that also deliver a frictionless customer experience.

This working group, in a roundtable format with moderators, will feature peer-to-peer credit union executive exchanges on best practices for facilitating stronger small business banking strategies across five key topics for serving this market within a member-first model:

• Digital Member Experience & Fintech Partnerships – The discussion will kick off with how credit unions can modernize small business banking through smarter technology and ecosystem collaboration, including how to compete with fintechs offering seamless digital experiences, choosing partner vs. build—deciding where to collaborate for digital lending, payments, and analytics; leveraging embedded finance to integrate business tools and financial products within business workflow.
• Smarter Lending: AI, Data & Alternative Credit Models – The discussion will center on modern underwriting and advisory powered by data and automation, including AI use cases in underwriting and portfolio monitoring; leveraging non-traditional data for small business credit decisions; balancing automation with relationship banking; and avoiding bias and maintaining compliance in AI-driven lending.
• The Regulatory & Risk Environment for 2026 – The focus of this discussion will be on understanding supervisory priorities, cybersecurity mandates, and opportunities within SBA programs; SBA program barriers and pending reforms for CUs; managing vendor and fintech partner risk; and compliance automation to move beyond manual processes.
• Real-Time Payments, Cash Flow Tools & Small Business Enablement – The discussion will center on building the next generation of treasury, payments, and cash-flow management solutions; helping small businesses manage cash flow and working capital; connecting accounting, invoicing, and CU accounts; and the rise of “financial operating systems” for SMBs.
• The Evolving Member Relationship – This conversation will focus on strengthening purpose-driven banking and expanding reach to underserved small businesses, including how to serve minority-, women-, and rural-owned small businesses; financial education, advisory, and community engagement; and creating a member-centric culture focused on training staff as trusted business advisors.

This working group, in a roundtable format with moderators, will feature peer-to-peer bank executive exchanges on best practices for facilitating stronger small business banking strategies across five key topics for serving this market:

• Defining the New Small Business Customer – The discussion is on understanding how small businesses are changing, and what they need most from local banks, including who the new SMB segments are (microbusinesses, creators, digital-first entrepreneurs); how their demand for credit, payments, and financial guidance has evolved; and what banks offer that fintechs can’t.
• Competing in the Digital Era – The discussion will focus on the importance of adopting the right technology stack for scale and customer experience, including how banks can partner with fintechs or vendors for cost-effective innovation; the imperative of streamlining digital onboarding and loan processing, and the benefits of using AI and data analytics for smarter underwriting and relationship management.
• Payments, Cash Flow & Embedded Finance – The discussion will center on simplifying money movement for small businesses; including ways to leverage FedNow and instant payments for SMB liquidity; the integration of payments, payroll, and accounting into one experience; and exploring embedded finance partnerships with local SaaS and e-commerce players.
• Relationship Banking 2.0: Blending High Tech with High Touch – The discussion will focus on how to reinvent personal connection in a digital-first world; how to make relationship managers more productive with digital tools; designing “advice-based” banking models for business owners; and building loyalty through community engagement, local events, and educational programs.
• Managing Risk & Regulation in a New Environment – The conversation will focus on how to remain compliant while innovating on behalf of SMBs, including navigating open banking, data sharing, and digital identity; balancing speed with sound underwriting in an AI era; and managing cyber risk and fraud in small business portfolios.

Building an AI-native product for SMB underwriting taught us a simple truth: trust comes from collaboration between analysts and AI systems. This talk discusses practical steps to getting reliable gains. The secret: AI starts → analysts correct → AI learns—and repeats. This keeps analysts in control, writes back to your system of record, and compounds trust as correction rates fall. The result is more throughput, stronger auditability, and better decisions. 

Al isn’t coming to lending-it’s already here, and it’s rewriting the rules. In this high-impact session, we will pull back the curtain on how banks can embrace Al to sharpen decision-making, drive deeper insights, and streamline operations-without losing the human touch that sets them apart.

Small businesses operate on significantly tighter margins than large enterprises. In today’s economic environment, they are less able to absorb additional costs and are more likely to pass them on to consumers. This creates an urgent need for banks to help small business clients strategize ways to offset rising expenses, navigate supply chain disruptions, and manage a tightening credit landscape.

Our panelists will discuss how banks can play a critical role by offering innovative financing options, effective cash management and expense tracking tools, and seamless ecommerce and payment solutions. Together, we’ll explore actionable strategies financial institutions can implement to help small businesses maintain stability and growth in a challenging economy.