EXCLUSIVE–Just having a #mobile app is no longer a differentiating factor for consumers when it comes to picking a bank, but that doesn’t mean consumers aren’t searching for a unique mobile #banking experience. However, for those regional #banks or credit unions without the assets of a Bank of America or JPMorgan Chase, providing a tailored […]
Bank Innovation
When it comes to #Open #Banking, regulatory, technological and competitive pressures are forcing #banks to confront the choice posed by French critic, journalist and novelist Alphonse Karr: “We can complain because #rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorns have roses.”
Recent Accenture research indicates that banks in Europe (where Open Banking is being mandated) and in North America and Asia Pacific (where, at the moment, it is optional) appear to be choosing to admire the flowers.
Our recent poll of 100 payments executives suggests that banks are seeing the opportunities inherent in allowing customers to share access to their financial data (such as bank account balances and transaction history) with non-bank third parties, so that those third parties can then create apps and services in which banking is embedded. Ninety percent of respondents expect Open Banking to boost revenues by up to 10 percent. Nearly two-thirds of North America banks say that implementing Open Banking is critical to remaining relevant and competing with new entrants, such as fintechs and tech giants like Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. A minority of banks (37 percent in North America, 29 percent in Europe and 23 percent in Asia Pacific) already distribute banking products through third parties to consumers with whom they do not have a primary relationship, although these are often through traditional distribution partnerships rather than digital embedding.
Yet like a rose bush, Open Banking also comes with some thorny threats. Half of the banks are concerned that Open Banking will make them more vulnerable to security breaches and fraud, because banks must expose their proprietary software and application programming interfaces (APIs) to allow outsiders to integrate their services. This concern is particularly prevalent in Europe, where nearly two-thirds of banks think Open Banking will increase risk; a point maybe not unconnected with the new European GDPR data protection regulations and the stiff fines that will be levied for breaches. The other risk posed by Open Banking is a business one, and is the concern that banks will become commoditised product providers with their transactional services and their brands buried deep in transaction flows controlled by non-bank competitors.
Banks can turn Open Banking to their advantage, and are likely to see revenue decline if they adopt just a basic compliance mentality. But doing so depends on how they look at it: as a #thorn to their existing value chain that they must minimise or avoid, or as an attractive new path to new products and services, incremental revenue streams, and a better experience for their customers. Done correctly, banks will be able to admire a glorious bouquet of roses at the centre of their business, rather than continually hunting for Band-Aids to stem the bleeding from pricked fingers.
I invite you to read more about our survey findings.
The post Banks decide whether Open Banking will be the rose or the thorn appeared first on Accenture Banking Blog.
#Open #banking—where #banks expose their data, functions and services to an ecosystem of customers, employees, third-party developers and vendors—has been hotly anticipated in Europe. We know almost US$ 1 billion was invested in PSD2-enabled services in 2016, up 200 percent from the year before¹.
Of course, some of this investment came from banks. But much of it originated from the group of voracious digital competitors circling banks’ traditional territory. That’s no surprise. The drive towards open banking gives them a direct line into a potentially lucrative market. And, crucially, it’s a market where they’re well placed to deliver the flexible, personalized experiences consumers demand.
Now, with PSD2 implementation across Europe just a few months away, new research from Accenture points to a major #opportunity for UK banks: We’ve found that more than two-thirds (69 percent) of UK consumers say they won’t share their personal financial data with third-party providers.
Based on this survey of over 2,000 consumers, it’s clear that online retailers, tech firms and social-media players face an uphill battle to convince consumers to allow them access to their financial data. Especially since over half of them say they’ll never change their banking habits and adopt open banking.
So why not? It all comes down to a lack of trust. Trust in online platforms and social-media companies as providers of payments services is low. We found most consumers would be unwilling to initiate a payment through an online platform (58 percent) or a social-media company (82 percent).
Fear of fraud is the primary factor. An overwhelming majority (85 percent) of consumers point to the risk of fraud as the biggest barrier to sharing bank account information with third-party providers. Data protection risks and increased potential for cyberattacks also feature highly.
By contrast, more than half of British consumers said they would trust only their own bank with their account information when seeking services like a better mortgage rate or savings account. This should be music to the ears of UK bank executives. Having won the trust of their customers over a period of many years, now is the time to build on that heritage to secure crucial early advantage in open banking.
The overriding priority? Be open to being open. That starts with the culture. Banks have to encourage a cultural shift from the outset. Everyone from the c-suite downwards needs to be involved in the conversation about open banking. They need to see clearly how it can help the bank achieve its core objectives: gains in revenue growth, cost reduction and talent management. The bottom line? Open banking has the potential to be a key initiative within every bank’s digital transformation program. As such it should be high on the agenda. Take a closer look.
But there’s a caveat: While we found banks can and should move fast to up their digital game and capitalize on the advantage they have in open banking, there’s a new generation of consumers coming through—and they feel very differently. Younger consumers (aged 37 or under) are more willing to trust non-traditional service providers.
One-third of Gen Z’ers say they’ll be likely to use open banking instead of usual payment methods. That’s in stark contrast to the only six percent of baby boomers who feel the same way. The same generational split is obvious in another area: Forty-two percent of millennials and 52 percent of Gen Z’ers say they’ll give online retailers permission to initiate payments directly from their bank accounts using apps/websites.
While this shows clearly where retailers need to focus their efforts in creating new payment experiences, in-store and online, banks themselves need to take notice if they’re to attract and retain business from younger consumers. That means no let-up in investments in social media, wearables and secure but frictionless customer authentication.
Let us know what you think. Thanks for reading.
The post The open banking opportunity appeared first on Accenture Banking Blog.
#Lloyds bank #prepares for the #future with SAP #core #banking to add sophisticated features like real-time positions and virtualized accounts.
Financial Technology
Seneca, the 1st-century Roman statesman, didn’t believe in luck. For him, what others called luck was when opportunity met preparation. Hopefully there aren’t many bank CEOs relying on luck to get them through their digital transformations. The opportunity in front of them is becoming clearer—to thrive in a more open and competitive #banking industry by being customer-centric and agile—but what of the preparation? What does a Future-Ready Bank look like? One big obstacle that #banks need to tackle is their cost base; particularly, seeing and understanding “#black box” #costs and then assigning ownership of them in ways that provide competitive advantage.
Regardless of how committed a management team is to becoming Future-Ready, in the words of Muhammad Ali, “The hands can’t hit what the eyes can&8217;t see.”
The black box refers to the complex and opaque costs, functions, processes and activities in banks that are not directly related to any single line of business. Comprising some 65 percent of a bank’s cost base, the complexity, centralisation, disparate data and non-accountability of the black box lands a knockout punch to bank profitability and evolution.
Banks can gain visibility into black box costs by bringing together data from the General Ledger, HR and AP systems, invoices, and other data sources to create a rich dataset that categorises costs in a meaningful way and clarifies cost ownership. It provides management with a front-to-back value chain view of the organisation, costs and headcounts tied directly to business line and revenue base.
Once banks have a clear view on this hefty share of their costs, they can assign responsibility for most, if not all of the cost base. Bank leadership can make such ownership concrete by creating a framework for rewarding managers based on successful cost management. Arguably, clarifying cost ownership represents the greatest shift in improving a bank’s ability to manage itself.
With visibility in hand and ownership in place, banks are positioned to better re-enact zero-based approaches to get off the traditional ropes and transform to the “new”. They can challenge not only the cost, but also if the activity needs to be done in the first place—informed by actionable, granular-level data analysis on how cost, risk and capital interact, to then purge unwarranted activities.
Though not a new concept, zero-based budgeting is becoming more critical as rates and yield curves rise, compliance costs increase and new agile, digital-native contenders emerge. Rather than being boxed into a cost corner, banks can fundamentally rethink their path to efficiency, better their cost-income ratios and, ultimately, their digital readiness. It requires banks to establish a culture in which visibility, transparency, simplicity and ownership of costs are the goals of the organisation. With the right preparation, banks will be able to make their own luck in a digital future.
To learn more, I invite you to read our report: Get fit | Shining a light into the black box
The post Target black box costs for zero-based, Future-Ready Banking appeared first on Accenture Banking Blog.
There’s been a lot of discussion in the #banking industry about #open #APIs that can enable different software technologies to work together with the promise of spurring innovation and shortening time to market for new services. It’s the right conversation to be having, but it tends to overlook the inherent challenges in banking software. If […]
Bank Innovation
EXCLUSIVE— With P2D2 and other regulatory initiatives mandating the sharing of customer data, #open #banking is slowly becoming a reality in the United Kingdom and other European countries. Other areas like the United States, however, have not been quite so prolific, a fact that might actually make UK fintechs more appealing to customers if those […]
Bank Innovation
Fintechs are partnering with #banks, banks are using #blockchain #technology, artificial intelligence, and #cryptocurrency and financial regulation is still undergoing massive changes. Challengers to traditional #banking, payment, and loan products have all launched this year, and FIs are fighting fraud, hacks, and scams with an increasing number of biometric security measures. #2017 has been a […]
Bank Innovation
What is the #state of #banking #innovation today? Each year, we poll the industry to find out. #Fintech funding has grown tougher for startups, but #banks’ balance sheets are looking stronger– what does it mean for innovation? Talk has shifted from last year&8217;s discussions on #blockchain and chatbots to artificial intelligence and cloud-based cores. Many […]
Bank Innovation
EXCLUSIVE – E-money app, #deVere #Vault, today added the Australian dollar and 21 other #currencies to its growing repertoire of now 27 currencies, as the #fintech continues to expand its products and customers since its launch a few months ago. Among the other currencies added are the Canadian dollar, Chinese yuan, Japanese yen, Mexican peso, […]
Bank Innovation
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