How community banks are balancing urgent pressures with long-term modernization

In this episode of the Tearsheet Podcast, recorded at the FIS Emerald 2025 conference, host Zack Miller interviews Peter Boyer from FIS and Craig Focardi from Celent about core modernization in banking. They discuss the challenges and opportunities facing community and regional banks, including deposit and profitability growth, operating costs, and fraud prevention. The conversation covers the spectrum of modernization, the balance between short-term needs and future infrastructure, and how FIS is helping clients through APIs, cloud banking, and digital platforms. They also explore the importance of agility and competitiveness in a changing environment, the impact of customer expectations, and their excitement for the future of banking, while also touching on regulatory issues and fraud. The episode concludes with a lighthearted question about their favorite Disney characters.