Banks risk losing the commercial spend relationship as finance moves beyond traditional banking

Australian fintech Inlogik appoints Charles Crane as CEO to lead its next phase of growth

SYDNEY, July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The commercial banking battleground is shifting.

Increasingly, the question is not just who holds the account or processes the transaction. It is who owns the experience around commercial spend, payments, approvals, controls, data and decision-making.

As embedded finance, B2B payments, AI and workflow automation reshape commercial banking, banks need to move beyond standalone portals and products and become part of the everyday systems where businesses manage financial decisions.

Australian fintech Inlogik today announced the appointment of Charles Crane as Chief Executive Officer, with the leadership transition reflecting the company's next phase of growth and its focus on helping banks compete in this changing market.

"The real risk for banks is not losing the payment," Crane said. "It is losing the customer relationship around how commercial finance is managed, approved, controlled and understood."

"Businesses increasingly expect banking to be embedded into the workflows they already use. The banks that deliver connected financial experiences, not just payment infrastructure, will be the ones that strengthen customer relationships over the next decade."

Fintechs and software platforms are moving quickly into those workflows. Banks still own much of the underlying financial infrastructure, but others are increasingly shaping how customers experience it.

Crane said this is not just a threat for banks. It is also a major opportunity.

"Banks already have what customers value most: trust, capital, treasury expertise, regulatory capability and long-standing relationships," he said. "The challenge is connecting those strengths into the way businesses now operate, so commercial banking becomes more connected, more intelligent and increasingly autonomous."

For more than 30 years, Inlogik has partnered with banks, issuers, enterprises and government organisations to modernise commercial finance through commercial card management, B2B payments, expense management, workflow automation and embedded banking capabilities.

Today, the company is expanding its Spend Platform into a connected commercial finance platform that brings together payments, cards, policy controls, approvals, AI-assisted decisioning and financial insights in one ecosystem.

The aim is simple: help banks deliver fintech-quality customer experiences without replacing core banking infrastructure or compromising governance, resilience and trust.

Richard Eskell, who has led Inlogik for more than three decades, will transition to the role of Founder and Board Director.

"Commercial finance has evolved from an operational function into a strategic capability that influences customer experience, governance and financial performance," Eskell said. "Charlie has played a significant role in shaping our long-term strategy, and I have complete confidence in his leadership as Inlogik enters its next phase of growth."

Crane said artificial intelligence will accelerate the transformation of commercial banking, but only where it delivers practical outcomes for banks and finance teams.

"AI is not about replacing finance professionals or creating more complexity," he said. "It is about helping organisations reduce friction, improve compliance and make better financial decisions. Over time, financial systems will move beyond automation towards trusted autonomous decisioning, with clear policy, controls and human oversight."

Looking ahead, Crane expects commercial finance to become more embedded, connected and workflow-native.

"The question is not whether commercial finance becomes more intelligent," he said. "It is whether banks remain at the centre of that experience as financial decision-making moves into the business systems their customers already use. The institutions that combine trusted banking infrastructure with intelligent software will define the next era of commercial banking."

About Inlogik

Inlogik specialises in commercial spend, helping banks, businesses and finance teams, manage card programs and B2B spend with more clarity and less complexity.

Built on more than three decades of experience operating inside real banking infrastructure, Inlogik's Spend Platform connects card solutions, expense solutions, approvals, analytics, AI-guided automation, and embedded banking experiences into one proven ecosystem.

Designed for financial institutions and the corporates they serve, Inlogik helps organisations strengthen governance, improve visibility, reduce friction, and move forward with confidence.

Interview Opportunities

Charles Crane is available for media interviews on:

• Why the next era of commercial banking will be connected, embedded, and increasingly autonomous
• From embedded finance to autonomous banking: what changes next for banks and their commercial customers
• Why banks risk losing the commercial spend relationship to fintechs
• Why the next fintech battleground is commercial banking, not consumer banking
• How banks can offer fintech-like experiences without rebuilding core infrastructure
• What AI can actually do in commercial spend beyond the hype
• How agentic commerce could reshape commercial banking, payments, and financial operations
• Why workflow-native, region-agnostic banking experiences are becoming strategically important
• Practical AI adoption in banking: where automation ends and autonomy begins
• How banks can modernise commercial finance without replacing core infrastructure
• What Inlogik's business strategy signals about the future of commercial spend, customer value, and connected banking

Media Contact:

Nandita Graham
Senior Global Marketing Manager
Nandita.graham@inlogik.com