An evolving competitive landscape of banking and fintech has prompted TD Bank to create a new role dedicated to commercial products and innovation, tapping a digital banking industry veteran to join the bank’s ranks.

Image via TD Bank.
Jo Jagadish is 90 days into her new tenure at TD, the company announced last week, stepping in as the head of commercial operating products and payment innovation. Specifically, she oversees treasury management, such as cash payables and receivables and reporting, the revenue management business, fintech strategy and partnerships, as well as small business online lending. The traditional business model of building internally or leveraging vendors to create product and platforms is difficult to scale, she said, and the bank felt pressure from new market entrants.
“Not only are we competing against your traditional bank competitors, but also financial technology companies and, in some cases, the big tech companies that are entering financial services,” Jagadish said. “So you think about the landscape and it has evolved, not only from a competitive perspective but I also think importantly from a customer perspective. Clients are very digitally savvy, they are very accustomed to streamlined experiences and digital and mobile experiences in their personal lives … And when you see that kind of integrated, real-time intuitive experience in your personal life, you start expecting that in your corporate life.”
Jagadish said she will look to contextual banking, or meeting corporate clients on the channels they’re already on, as well as personalized insights and fintech partnerships as guiding values to provide corporate clients a holistic and convenient banking experience. Already in her first three months, she has repurposed the bank’s SMB online lending platform to reach customers for the Paycheck Protection Program, retooling the platform within 72 hours. Looking ahead, Jagadish is developing a PPP forgiveness digital experience on the same platform, which “will be ready in a couple of weeks,” she said.
Once the forgiveness online platform is squared away, Jagadish said her primary focus will be on small businesses, taking after the bank’s typical segment-specific approach to product innovation. The bank has teed up expansions to the SMB online platform, including enabling online account opening, enhancing virtual assistants, and improving such mobile banking capabilities as initiating wires and ACH payments.
Prior to TD Bank, Jagadish worked at JPMorgan Chase in a similar role as the executive director and head of new product development and fintech partnerships. She also has held senior roles at Citi, focusing on digital payments, and at HSBC in the business banking vertical.
“What is the future of our business and the ‘bank of the future,’ as we call it, and we know that we’re going to find partnerships along the way in order to get there, and I think this role is really centered around bringing our existing products on the growth trajectory but also finding those unique partnership opportunities to add to our toolkit,” Jagadish said.






