Banks – “Don’t Panic”, says Wells Fargo’s Ellis
The banking industry is complex by its nature but banks and bankers should look up from their budgets, listen to their customers, stop whining about regulations and collaborate on industry issues.
Retail Banking
Banking in the Digital World
While established banks struggle with their legacy systems, smaller players and new entrants are quickly adopting new technologies – but there are some trends in digital banking that are being slowly adopted by the banking industry as a whole.
Why banks need a chief mobility officer
Mobility has risen to such a level of importance that many people believe it deserves its own C-level position to advance and align mobility strategy throughout the enterprise. In no other industry is this more pressing than in banking where financial institutions are increasingly using mobile apps to set themselves apart from their rivals.
Why Yahoo’s malware attack is hitting banks hard
At the end of last year, Yahoo was hit by a malware attack. It affected over two million clients, mainly in Romania, Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain, putting their personal data at risk. Upon visiting the website between 27 December and 3 January, users received advertisements, some of which were malicious and infected users’ devices without even a click.
Znap puts merchants at heart of mobile commerce revolution
Mobile payment isn’t about reinventing the wheel – it’s about making merchants and customers’ lives better by establishing a relationship built on knowledge and trust, according to mobile payments platform Znap.
“Technology tail wagging the strategy dog” in retail banking says Celent
Bitcoin, gamification and Personal Financial Management are “generating more heat than light” in debates about the future of retail banking and banks should not be distracted from other major challenges including digital channels and legacy transformation.
MasterCard and Syniverse launch “not just another” mobile payment service
MasterCard has partnered with mobile technology specialist Syniverse under an audacious plan that aims at nothing less than “bringing mobile financial services to every single mobile user on the planet”.
Raincoats, taxis and the future of banking
What do taxis, the weather, mobile wallets and raincoats have in common? They are all potential variables in determining a person’s daily spend – and they provide a great opportunity for banks to use data to save customers money, according to Aman Narain, global head of digital banking Singapore at Standard Chartered.
IND acquisition opens chink in competitors’ armour for Misys
The acquisition of digital banking specialist IND Group will give Misys access to parts of its rivals’ customer base that it intends to exploit as it develops its offerings in the digital banking channel, while the closer integration of the IND capabilities will also shore up Misys’ defences against encroachment of its own ageing user base.
More mobile please – but make it relevant
The likes and dislikes of mobile banking customers around the world suggest that there is an opportunity to expand mobile services globally – but providers need to be careful they are targeting the right information to the right people, according to a new survey by analytics firm FICO.
A brave new world for CIOs?
A new role for CIOs in the banking sector was highlighted at the recent Gartner Symposium: to maintain their future relevance and position, they need to be seen as consultants in the technology space, not just providers.
NCR makes “fundamental” changes to financial services business
NCR is “fundamentally and permanently changing” financial services its financial services business with a £1.6 billion acquisition of Digital Insight, a Californian on-line and mobile banking solutions provider. It has also bought UK-based fraud prevention company Alaric.
Second IT glitch “unacceptable” says RBS
An IT problem that left customers of RBS and its Natwest and Ulster Bank subsidiaries unable to use their accounts yesterday evening was described as “unacceptable” by a bank spokeswoman. For three hours – on what was expected to by the largest online shopping day of the year, dubbed “Cyber Monday” – the banks’ customers […]
Banks! Stop fadding about – talk to customers
Is there an industry more obsessed with fads than banking?. Maybe it’s because it is such a follow-the-leader industry. Perhaps it’s because banking is a very me-too business with few (if any) real brand distinctions. Or is it simply that senior management is so obsessed with the needs of shareholders.
Big banking is watching you
Online retailers have become sophisticated at observing customer behaviour, and then marketing based on the individual’s inclinations and past actions. Now, banks are starting to do it too. That could lead to some interesting scenarios, according to Charles Radclyffe, chief executive officer at business intelligence consultancy BIPB.
Moving Money: the ATM makers’ view of the future
With the rise in mobile payments and wallets, cash is dead and so is the ATM business, right? Not according to the ATM manufacturers, who are all being remarkably sanguine.
Keeping the customer profitable
Separating customer billing from core systems can have dramatic effects on the bottom line – a study by Boston Consulting Group at one bank found that 17% of clients were unprofitable.
Bank branch “not dead” says report – but banks must be more mobile
Mobile banking may be on the rise around the world but the bank branch is not dead, according to new research by IT firm GFT Technologies.
Google is banks’ biggest fear finds innovation survey
The average bank now typically views web portals such as Google as the biggest threat to its business, according to a new report by French retail banking association Efma and business IT firm Infosys. Yet banks also report rising levels of innovation within their firms.
ACI Worldwide targets “fragmented” retail bank payment systems
Large retail banks sometimes find it hard to change because they have assimilated many smaller banks through acquisition, each of which is running on a payments engine that has different features and may be very old. That can make it difficult to offer new services, but there is a solution according to Paul Thomalla, head of EMEA at US-based payments and technology firm ACI Worldwide.
KPMG calls time on the universal banking model
Geopolitical shifts and increasing protectionism among nations will mean that the universal banking model is no longer sustainable – and there is little that anyone can do, according to Bill Michael, EMA head of financial services at KPMG. “The future shape of banking is beyond the control of boards, individual regulators or countries alone,” Michael […]
Lessons on living in a real-time payments world
Coming to the US to tell an audience of payments specialists about how the UK has transformed its national infrastructure over the past five years with the introduction of an effectively real-time payment system might have been considered a rough assignment – what can the Brits teach the wider world, particularly the US, about payments […]
US consumers reject mobile wallets, survey says
The overwhelming majority of US consumers would not use a mobile wallet, according to a survey carried out by consultancy Consult Hyperion during September.
Cross-channel banking: beyond the app
Understanding and embracing cross-channel communication behaviours will become increasingly critical to success in the banking industry, writes Steve Dille, SVP of global marketing at Maryland USA based communications firm Message Systems.
Omnichannel: the new normal for retail banks
With customers expecting consistent service across all channels, banks must step up to the plate and streamline their processes when it comes to customer interaction. Using the omnichannel approach, they’ll also reap the rewards of better customer intelligence and a clear idea of how best to spend precious budgets.
Retail banking: underwriting the revolution
New technologies are transforming the consumer experience in retailing and in banking. For banks to remain relevant, they need to work with innovators, writes Paul Skeldon
Barclays builds on Pingit head start
Barclays is making a determined effort to capitalise on the two-year lead it has built up with its Pingit mobile payments application with two new applications intended to allow retailers to integrate mobile payments into their services.
Yorkshire paves a path in shared services with HP alliance
The UK’s second largest building society is being moved to a modern delivery platform managed by HP, with the establishment of a Shared Services Alliance with HP Enterprise Services UK to offer the platform to a wider range of UK financial services institutions.
Bricks or clicks? The choice isn’t yours
The challenging ongoing economic climate and the resulting shrinking markets have created an environment of greatly increased competition. In order to deal with the pressures of recession, retail banks are increasingly being forced into a strategic transformation of business structure, culture and practice. How they interact with customers is a prime focus during these transformations, writes Mike Davies, Regional Vice President Sales EMEA North at GMC Software Technology.
Demystifying m-commerce
Payments made via mobile devices are fast becoming de rigueur as tablet sales are expected to overtake personal computers by 2017. Shane Fitzpatrick addresses five common myths about m-commerce and how to capture online revenues. Smartphones are already more popular globally than desktop PCs and of the 1.875 billion phones to be sold in 2013, […]
How to achieve customer-centricity
Why are banks and insurers struggling to operate as true customer-centric organisations when they know great customer service is a crucial differentiator? The answer lies in the enterprise operating model, which can create a structural barrier to achieving customer-centricity, writes Sean Tomlinson. head of consulting, private sector, Steria (right). The problem with the enterprise operating […]
Banks must adopt video banking, says Celent report
Banks need to embrace video banking if they are going to compete effectively and retain customers, according to a new report released by analyst firm Celent.
Changing banking for good: aspiration or opportunity?
The possibility of jail for miscreant top bankers has hit the headlines following publication of the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards final report, a compendium of all that is considered wrong with both banks and the regulator …
The financial services production line: improving the customer journey
Customers expect their interactions to be as short, and as easy as possible, with a satisfactory outcome. This ideal customer experience can be achieved through a combination of the right strategy, the right resources, the right workforce skills and supporting tools and technology . But so many firms still fail to get it right
Meeting the Needs of the Social Customer
While a child as young as nine years old can use Facebook and Twitter (despite rules saying users should be over 13), multi-million dollar financial service companies often fall behind in their adoption of social media.
Doubts cloud UK Treasury retail competition plans
UK Treasury officials and senior bank representatives showed diverging views over the future of retail banking at an event hosted by Experian in London yesterday, revealing differences of opinion about how best to reform the sector.
Nationwide installs NCR anti-fraud tools on its ATMs
Nationwide Building Society has brought in a new tool from ATM maker NCR designed to protect its customers against card-skimming, a type of fraud in which criminals steal customer data from ATMs.
Taking ethical banking global
In early 2009, soon after the global subprime fallout, the official Vatican newsletter published a rather contextual referral for Islamic banking, observing that the ‘ethical principles on which Islamic finance is based may bring banks closer to their clients and to the true spirit which should mark every financial service‘, writes Riaz Akhtar, senior consultant, […]
Notch one up for the War on Cash
The latest figures from UK retailers show a significant move to debit cards and new mechanisms like PayPal as consumers shy away from cash and credit cards.
Banking on the user-centric experience? Begin with robust data and analytics
The UK retail banking sector is characterised by a continuing lack of competition and resultant limited customer churn between financial services providers. This has made it difficult even for new market entrants to gain market share from long-standing, less popular competitors, due to the inconvenience and complexity involved in switching banks.
