Pakistan, Oct. 23 -- For more than a century, banks controlled access to money. Whether someone wanted to buy a house, expand a business or finance a vehicle, the journey began at a bank. It assessed the borrower, set the terms and decided whether the transaction would proceed.

That relationship is changing. A car buyer may obtain financing through the manufacturer. An online merchant may receive working capital from the platform processing its sales. A retailer offers credit at checkout; a developer sells apartments on instalments. The customer may never meet a loan officer or know which institution supplied the capital.

This is more than another chapter in fintech. It is a shift in who controls the economics of lending. Banks may stil...