Innovation as the main factor for sustainable development of a commercial bank

The article is an original study of the essence of banking innovations and their role in ensuring sustainable development of a commercial bank. The authors make definitive analysis of the term ‘innovation’ in research works of domestic and foreign authors, reveal their key feature, namely, the novelty that carries energy necessary for sustainable development of economy and a commercial bank. From the point of view of the synergetic approach and using the principles of non-equilibrium thermodynamics, scenario development of an open economic system is considered, a commercial bank being a special case of it; schemes to illustrate it are provided. The analysis made by the authors allows for a conclusion that it is possible to ensure a stable development of a credit institution only if there is a permanent inflow of external energy that compensates for energy losses due to entropic dispersion and a negative influence of internal and external factors thereon. Systemic innovation activity come laden with this energy, which leads to the conclusion that it is innovations that are the main factor ensuring a sustainable development of a commercial bank. A classification of banking innovations into basic (radical), combinatorial, and modifying ones is given.peer-reviewe