Navigating the Nordic financial landscape: 2025 challenges and priorities

As the Nordic financial sector faces new hurdles and opportunities, a variety of issues are front and centre for financial institutions, technology providers, and fintechs. 

Our latest survey of 150 responses reveals how Nordic institutions across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden are navigating the current landscape and their strategic priorities for 2025. Providing valuable insights into areas such as the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), Verification of Payee (VoP), AI’s growing role in financial services, perspectives on central bank digital currency (CBDC) and stablecoin, and evolving payment trends such as Account-to-Account (A2A) and instant payments. 

Analysis of our survey responses provides a comprehensive overview on how Nordic institutions are navigating transformation shaped by innovation, regulation, and evolving customer expectations, with progress and priorities varying by country. 

We explore regional specific views towards: 

• Key priorities for 2025 
• Readiness for Verification of Payee (VoP) 
• Strategic AI integration for real impact 
• The rise of A2A, instant, and mobile payments 
• Attitudes towards central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and stablecoin 
• The impact of DORA