Online banking shifting power from banks to customers

The rise in digital banking is causing a power shift from  banks to customers, a major bank says.

Seventy-six per cent of New Zealand adults now own a smartphone, a recent Roy Morgan survey has revealed. 

And according to Westpac, 70% of all banking transactions are now being completed digitally. 

"Importantly, it's not just the Millennials who are banking on the go," said CANSTAR General Manager- New Zealand, Jose George.
"A recent Canstar Blue survey of more than 2,400 New Zealanders found that while Gen Y are most likely to do a lot of their banking via mobile, Gen X and Baby Boomers are also very smartphone-savvy.

"Customers really have become accustomed to using their smartphone for everything, from checking the weather to finding a property to buy to doing their banking. And the explosion in well-designed fintech platforms and solutions means that banking customers have a higher than ever expectation of intuitive banking functionality across both desktop and mobile."

Westpac's chief digital officer Melissa Macfarlane says the mainstream use of the smartphone has had a huge impact on consumer behavior and customer expectations are interlinked with the mobile functionality of the day.

"Right now, your bank can be accessed from your pocket 24 hours a day, seven days a week," said Macfarlane.

"We believe (and are banking on) that demand for digital banking is moving beyond straightforward transaction and account management. Customers will expect value-added extras and tools from their bank that cover things like financial education. They will also expect us to know them and tailor our offerings in a personalised way – giving customers the ability to choose what and how they want their finances managed.

"Banking is no longer on the banks terms, but on our customer’s terms."

According to Mrs Macfarlane, the secret to innovative success is to behave like a bank- but to think like a startup.

"The successes we’ve had are direct outcomes of Westpac’s ability to behave like a bank and not like a bank at the same time. We’re thinking and acting like a 200 year old start-up," she said.

The Co-operative Bank’s IT infrastructure has recently been transformed using Unisys ClearPath Forward systems, creating more a flexible environment across a range of operating systems, to enable delivery of core banking matched with capacity to deliver new products and digital services to customer.

 “We invested in refreshing and modernising our underlying IT infrastructure to create an environment that supports our bi-modal IT delivery needs now and into the future,” said Annette Natta, general manager of Information Services at The Co-operative Bank.  

“We get the best of both worlds by having the performance and security we have always valued, combined with the flexibility the Forward fabric offers to help us deliver new and enhanced services to our customers. 

“Unisys continues to provide flexibility and innovation in line with our business strategy – that’s why they have remained our technology partner since 1967.”