ING Bank has taken a significant step in financial technology by implementing an artificial intelligence (AI) model for currency pricing, traditionally a human-driven task. Simon Bevan, ING’s global head of electronic trading, revealed in a recent Bloomberg podcast that the bank’s new AI system is surpassing human capabilities in market analysis and spread adjustment.

“What we found was this model could really just outperform the human. It was better at predicting a market, not predicting it,” Bevan said, drawing parallels to the groundbreaking AlphaGo AI. He noted that the AI is “adjusting spreads in ways we’d have never, never done as humans.”

Bevan further explained that the development of the AI model marked a pivotal shift in ING’s approach to trading. He mentioned that they had been thinking about where the market was heading and how to hire, reflecting on the changes seen over the past 20 years as markets transitioned away from traditional voice traders.

ING’s strategy involved hiring a specialist AI programmer, giving them creative freedom to innovate. The bank is now looking to expand this technology across other asset classes.

“We created this idea of across asset group,” Bevan said, which indicates plans to adapt the AI model for credit pricing as early as next year.

This move by ING represents a significant step in the banking industry’s adoption of AI, potentially reshaping the landscape of currency trading and beyond.