All essays
A complete chronological record of everything published on Transaction Intelligence.
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№ 1 · 05 Mar
4 min readBehavioural Science
The Cost of Second-Guessing: How Businesses Manage Their Own Regret
Regret shapes how businesses and consumers make decisions. But while individuals fear buyer’s remorse, companies worry about fraud, pricing mistakes, and missed opportunities. Striking the right balance is vital; overcorrecting in one direction means lost revenue, while too much risk damages trust.
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№ 2 · 03 Mar
4 min readBehavioural Science
Regret Minimisation: How Payment Platforms Engineer Your Decisions
The digital marketplace isn't just selling products—it's engineering emotions. Behind every checkout page and "limited time offer" lies a sophisticated understanding of our deepest purchasing anxiety: the fear of making the wrong choice.
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№ 3 · 26 Feb
2 min readRegulatory
The Fragility of Transatlantic Data Transfers
As digital commerce grows increasingly global, the legal frameworks governing data transfers across borders have never been more important. Yet these frameworks remain surprisingly fragile, especially between the EU and US.
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№ 4 · 25 Feb
2 min readBehavioural Science
From Confusion to Exclusion
Clear communication in banking isn't just about customer service—it's about enabling confident participation in the modern financial world.
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№ 5 · 21 Feb
2 min readBanking Technology
When Systems Fail: The Hidden Impact on Financial Inclusion
The Treasury Committee's investigation into Barclays' January outage reveals a critical but often overlooked relationship: the connection between operational resilience and financial inclusion.
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№ 6 · 17 Feb
3 min readUX & Design
The Consistency Principle in Digital Products: Why Small Interactions Matter More Than Big Features
In nature, the most dramatic transformations often come from consistent forces rather than sudden events. Rivers carve canyons not through violent floods, but through persistent flow. The same principle applies to digital products.
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№ 7 · 14 Feb
3 min readUX & Design
The Engagement Problem: Designing Automation That Keeps Humans in the Loop
In The Automation Paradox, I explored how financial automation risks disengaging users. This follow-up examines how automation can enhance, rather than replace, human judgement—ensuring users remain active participants in decision-making rather than passive observers.
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№ 8 · 10 Feb
2 min readUX & Design
The Automation Paradox How Smart Banking Features May Be Making Us Worse with Money
Smart banking features promise to streamline our finances through automation and clever defaults. But are we sacrificing financial awareness for convenience? Explore the tension between automated money management and mindful decision-making in personal finance.
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№ 9 · 07 Feb
4 min readPayments
The Psychology of Modern Payment Choices From Cards to BNPL
How do payment methods influence our spending decisions? From the psychological distance created by card payments to the sophisticated mechanisms of Buy Now, Pay Later services, this article examines the hidden forces shaping our financial choices.
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№ 10 · 03 Feb
3 min readBehavioural Science
Seeing Around Corners Developing Second-Order Thinking
When Amazon introduced one-click purchasing in 1999, it seemed like an obvious win. Reduced friction, higher sales. But the ripple effects continue to reshape retail in unexpected ways, from return fraud to changing consumer psychology. Welcome to the world of second-order thinking.
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№ 11 · 31 Jan
3 min readBehavioural Science
Consistency Over Intensity: The Hidden Power of Small Actions
As January ends, packed gym classes thin out, with 80% of New Year's resolutions already abandoned. While we celebrate dramatic transformations, we overlook a far more powerful force: consistency. The science shows that small, regular actions trump sporadic bursts of intense effort.
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№ 12 · 27 Jan
2 min readAI & Automation
Deepseek & AI Investments
Last Monday, DeepSeek, a Chinese AI research laboratory spun out of a quant trading firm, released a preview of its latest language