The KeyBank-Qolo alliance reflects an evolution in how banks and fintechs can co-create value through deeper integration. Qolo is an all-in-one platform for card issuing, ledger management, and payment processing, designed to simplify and streamline your operations. The partnership has allowed KeyBank to add features like same-day ACH reconciliation, advanced dashboard reporting, and simplified statement reporting, which have improved the platform’s functionality and customer experience. The collaboration between the two firms goes beyond a typical vendor-client relationship, with both companies working closely on product development and infrastructure investments. The decision-making process for such partnerships at KeyBank involves considering factors like time to market, alignment with core competencies, regulatory complexity, total cost of ownership, and strategic control. The success of the KeyBank-Qolo partnership is attributed to factors like foundational business model alignment, cultural alignment, and deep technical integration. What sets this partnership apart is the shared ability to co-build and influence the evolution of embedded banking infrastructure together, according to Bennie Pennington, Head of Embedded Banking at KeyBank. Pennington noted that KeyBank’s operational depth — spanning the nuance of regulation, risk management, and customer workflow patterns — complements Qolo’s speed and technical flexibility, creating a joint capability greater than the sum of its parts. KeyBank’s core banking systems must connect smoothly with Qolo’s infrastructure, which handles transaction data but also sends near real-time updates on risk, compliance, and operational metrics, backed by redundant data flows. To achieve this level of coordination, KeyBank has configured its integration so that Qolo can receive payment settlement requests directly from its ACH settlement platform. Embedded banking infrastructure falls into what Pennington refers to as “specialized table stakes”: essential for all players, but not a space where banks can typically differentiate. Qolo’s tech gives the bank a competitive edge by focusing on implementation and customer experience, instead of relying on exclusivity.