To win against non-traditional competitors, retail banks must streamline operations and create innovative products and services, based on mobile, social and analytics technologies.
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Innovation Imperatives in Retail Banking
1. • Cognizant Reports
Innovation Imperatives in Retail Banking
Banks must thoughtfully analyze the data generated by cloud-enabled
mobile and social computing to streamline services and create innovative
ways of transacting that appeal to the millennial demographic, and beyond.
Executive Summary operating structures and processes. Many banks
The current climate of increased regulation, have focused on reengineering their user inter-
combined with a global economic slowdown, is faces across delivery channels, in an attempt
challenging the profitability of retail banking to provide customers with an integrated multi-
operations around the world. Regulatory channel user experience. By eliminating these
compliance has added significantly to the cost channel silos, they can lower operating costs and
of doing business and is impacting sources of improve time to market with new products. This
fee income upon which banks have traditionally type of innovation will drive customer acquisition
relied. Global economic sluggishness has resulted and retention, changing methods of customer
in depressed loan demand and historically low engagement from “push” to “pull” across the
interest rates, creating enormous pressure on physical and virtual worlds.
bank interest margins.
Even as they look to do this, banks must protect
It is against this backdrop that financial institu- their existing customer base from the grow-
tions are attempting to concurrently address the ing threat of non-traditional competitors that
dual objectives of streamlining operations while have entered the banking space with disruptive
rethinking how to go to market with innovative technology advancements. With this need to
products and services. To survive and flourish, innovate, many banks are turning to mobile
banks will need to renew their operating models services and social media to create operational
and develop innovative services that differentiate improvements, as well as analytics-based (and
themselves from the competition. This can hap- thus more targeted and personalized) ways of
pen if they build upon core strengths and unique engaging customers across all demographics,
characteristics that allow them to continue sat- most particularly with the increasingly desirable
isfying existing account holders while attracting millennial market segment.
the next generation of customers.
Cloud computing has emerged as a way to drive
As operating costs rise and income sources down costs to pay for this service delivery innova-
decline, retail banking operations require a tion. Furthermore, analytics as a service has the
fundamental and continuous review of their potential to monetize the data proliferating from
cognizant reports | august 2012
2. the explosion of mobile and social computing and convenience and enhancing productivity. Smart-
enhance business case development for invest- phones, for example, utilize specialized applica-
ment in mobile and social media. tions that allow customers to deposit checks
by sending images rather than physical items.
This white paper will discuss how the retail According to a 2011 Federal Reserve study,2 the
banking industry can respond to new competitive use of physical checks declined by 7.1% between
threats while also reducing costs by transforming 2006 and 2009, even as electronic payments
their operating models and enabling innovation increased at an average rate of 9.3% in the same
through smart technology investments. period, to $40.6 billion.
Innovation Drivers Furthermore, mobile has proved to be the
The retail banking industry faces an unprec- cheapest3 means for processing banking transac-
edented need to invest in new operating tions. Banks that encourage their customers to
efficiencies while reducing costs. At the same use this channel in increasing numbers have the
time, it needs to improve customer experience unusual opportunity of simultaneously improving
across all channels and offer consumers more customer convenience and reducing cost.
targeted products and services. All of this must
be accomplished in an environment of limited This approach would appear to match consumer
resources and a need for near-immediate return banking preferences. In the UK, for example,
on investment. research firm Intelligent Environment4 reports
that smartphone penetration reached 39% of
Technological advancements will play a key role UK adults in 2011. Furthermore, given the option,
in the dual pursuit of efficiencies and customer one in five Britons is willing to pay bills using their
gratification. Developments in mobility and mobile phone, while one-quarter are willing to
social computing are seen as the most exciting transfer funds this way.
opportunities in decades for improving customer
interaction and revolutionizing the way consum- Mobile Implications
ers conduct their banking. Moreover, new-age Retail banks have little choice but to innovate
competition and demographic change are further in this rapidly changing environment. Prompted
driving investment in technologies that boost pro- by the loss of some critical components of tradi-
ductivity and help retain competitive advantage. tional fee income as a result of new regulations,5
banks are scrambling to find new income sources
Mobile, Social Media and Collaboration and ways to reduce costs. For instance, nearly all
Mobile devices are creating opportunities for retail banks are revisiting the criteria for offering
banks and other financial services providers to no-fee services, such as for checking accounts.
offer customers innovative ways of performing One trend among retail banks is to offer no-fee
traditional banking functions. Nowhere is this checking only to customers who meet far more
trend more evident than in the area of mobile stringent conditions than previously required,
payments. Initial mobile banking services were including the use of lower cost delivery channels,
basic in nature — checking balances, etc. — but such as the Web or mobile.
advancements in device and communication tech-
nologies and the creation of native applications Smartphones will be the key driver for
for mobile devices are allowing these services to increased demand for mobile banking ser-
move up the value chain, overcoming geographi- vices. A study by ACI Worldwide and Aite
cal and technological boundaries. Group6 found 80% of respondents had used
smartphones for mobile banking, while only one-
In Indonesia, PT Bank CIMB Niaga, the country’s third of non-smartphone users had reported
largest bank, is leveraging the widespread reach doing so. Clearly, mobile banking and smartphone
of mobile devices (90% penetration) to provide adoption will grow hand in hand.
money transfer services to a population spread
across 17,508 islands.1 Arming consumers with real-time information
regarding their current financial positions is
This kind of innovation is disruptive to traditional useful. However, combining financial data with
banking practices and creates cost-efficien- GPS technology will enable banks to provide
cies for banks while also increasing customer value-added services not traditionally associated
cognizant reports 2
3. with financial institutions, as well as counter the branch. In another, the bank offered special incen-
threats of non-traditional competitors. tives to customers who used Facebook Places to
check into selected partner outlets.7
An example is location-specific services such as
customized or special offers. Imagine receiving a While social networking has been success-
message on your smartphone that you are cur- fully leveraged across many industries overall,
rently standing two blocks from your favorite banks have been slow to reap its benefits (see
retailer, which is offering 50% off your favorite Figure 1). Successful integration of social media
brand of jeans, and further, that your smartphone into the overall strategy of a bank requires a
can also act as a payment device. Embracing the long-term commitment as part of an overall retail
smartphone as a payment device to replace debit strategy, and not a one-off effort that creates
or credit cards will also provide banks with an yet another channel silo. (see sidebar, "Keys to
answer to near field communication (NFC) and Successful Use of Social Media," next page).
radio frequency devices, as well as new payment
services such as the one popularized by Square. Customer engagement and education are
critical components of this enterprise strategy.
It is, therefore, imperative for retail banks to Banks that build rapport with their Facebook or
create a comprehensive mobile strategy that Twitter followers through frequent and genuine
centers around an integrated and seamless multi- conversations and rapidly respond to customer
channel banking experience. Banks that have queries on in-house and external blogs will be the
been early adopters in creating a mobile banking big gainers from this phenomenon.
presence are in an advantageous position com-
pared with late-starters. However, mobile banking Examples abound of how social media can be uti-
is moving rapidly, with continuous advances in lized to predict and then track consumer response
devices and platforms, making it crucial for banks to new policies or products, providing banks
to stay on top of these developments. with better information prior to making these
decisions. Without question, tracking response
The Sway of Social through social media would allow banks to be
If mobility is leading the way in retail bank- more responsive to feedback, both negative and
ing product and service innovation, then social positive. An example is Bank of America’s belated
networking is transforming how retail banks inter- decision to rescind an increase in debit card fees
act with customers and strengthen their brands after seeing consumer outcry on social media.
and reputations. The case of Singapore’s leading
bank, DBS, sheds light on how social media can be In a positive response to social media’s widening
exploited. The bank has launched various social influence, some retail banks are proactively
media initiatives, including one that encouraged stepping up to the plate and leveraging more
young customers to design ideas for their next evolved thinking. For example, 1st Mariner Bank in
Social Media Experience is Still Nascent for Banks
Q. Which statement best describes your firm's experience regarding social media?
8%
Advanced: We have a social media competency and
regularly use social media tools.
Intermediate: We have launched social media efforts
39%
but don't consider ourselves experts.
32%
Novice: We have not launched any social media efforts.
Beginner: We have launched social media efforts but
21% are not very experienced.
Source: "Social Media at the Starting Blocks: A Look at Financial Institutions in Europe and the United States,"
Aite Group, November 2010.
Response Base: 166
Figure 1
cognizant reports 3
4. Quick Take
Keys to Successful Use of Social Media
• Develop a comprehensive social media strategy that is aligned with business goals.
• Ensure organization-wide buy-in; top management must take the lead.
• Identify key metrics and measure them regularly.
• Educate employees on the social media policy.
• Make social media a key part of the organization’s culture.
• Identify risks related to compliance and revise the strategy appropriately.
Source: Cognizant Research Center
the U.S. launched a product aimed at customers from various channels, typically in non-standard
in their late teens based on feedback from social formats, needs to be stored and then normalized
media interaction. to enable consistent real-time analysis.
Big Data + Analytics = Big Opportunity Deployment of analytics for various functions,
Big data — defined as datasets that are so large, such as risk management, reporting and process
fast-growing and diverse that they cannot be man- improvement, will be critical. The volume of data
aged by traditional means — is at the heart of how generated on a daily basis has grown exponen-
banks can cash in on the multi-channel experience. tially, thanks to the increased use of technology.
To harness the power of big data, banks need to According to one recent report,9 the amount of
implement data architectures that create a single data stored in digital formats (globally, across
customer view and a reliable source of enterprise industries) grew from 25% to 94% between
data. This will require a move away from siloed 2000 and 2007. A 2011 report by The Tower Group
data management and inconsistent data. estimates that mid-tier banks’ data volumes
have multiplied 150 times over the past seven
Banks need to embrace virtualization and the years.10 In the UK, the Centre for Economics and
power of cloud computing to reduce the capital Business Research (Cebr) found that data stored
expenditures related to building and managing in banks employing more than 1,000 people
IT infrastructure (see sidebar, "Cloud-Based amounted to 1,931 terabytes.11 These factors are
Solutions: A Source of Efficiency"). Cloud-based driving banks to improve their enterprise-level
models such as business process as a service8 data management capabilities and deploy big
(BPaaS) have emerged as a key source for data analytics. (see sidebar, "Keys for Successful
further reducing costs related to technology Use of Advanced Analytics," next page).
and talent acquisition, particularly in the areas
of data collection and analysis. Data arriving
Quick Take
Cloud-Based Solutions: A Source of Efficiency
• Lower total cost of ownership.
• Identify and eliminate non-value-adding processes.
• Provider takes care of access to latest technology and upgrades.
• Reduced technical and operational overhead.
• Fewer proprietary products being used and vendor contracts being managed.
• Clearer measure of risks depending on the nature and criticality of the process being outsourced.
• Lower risk of acquiring talent to run functions in-house.
Source: "The Case for More Functional, Utility-Like Trade Management Systems,” Cognizant Research Center
cognizant reports 4
5. Insights derived from customer interactions are real-time and repetitive analysis, can help banks
an important driver in continuously improving identify unusual and suspicious activities.
multi-channel user experience, operating effi-
ciencies, and product and service innovations Clearly, the big data revolution has created
that can become important differentiators.12 For many new opportunities for banks. By embracing
example, behavioral analytics can be applied cloud-based advanced analytics solutions deliv-
to mobile banking data to understand changing ered through the BPaaS model, banks can lever-
patterns to modify apps and improve services, age the power of big data and advanced analytics,
accordingly. Social media analytics can be used while bypassing some of the troublesome issues
to monitor customer sentiment toward a bank’s related to technology and talent acquisition.
brand. Banks can also identify individuals who are
social media influencers and can be approached Fending Off Non-Traditional
with direct marketing offers. Competitors
Even as retail banks attempt to revive their
However, applying analytics to big data has far revenue streams and reputations, nimble-footed,
greater potential. New regulations require banks’ technology-driven entrants are gaining popular-
risk programs to be predictive, utilizing histori- ity and market share. These competitors vary in
cal bank information and external data sources. size and ambition, but they have all built their
Analytics tools will play a key role in complying business models around mobile and social media.
with these reporting standards, as they allow While some niche players are trying to get a piece
banks to combine historical data with future of the revenue pie by offering banking services to
scenarios to make better-informed predictions. specific market segments, such as the unbanked,
others are far more ambitious, seeking, for exam-
Analytics can also be deployed to improve day-to- ple, to dominate the mobile payments landscape.
day risk management, a function that has gained
importance in the post-crisis era. Banks are now To maintain their market-leading position,
required to take a more holistic view of risk across retail banks will need to think and act more
the organization. Combined with enterprise innovatively to improve existing products, while
data management, banks can use analytics to developing new services to meet the demands
better understand their risk exposures and make of a competitive marketplace. Meanwhile, the
decisions accordingly. competitive landscape is being transformed by
non-banking players, thanks primarily to techno-
Another area where analytics can help is with logical advancements and the adoption of exist-
fraud detection. The rise of online and mobile ing technologies for new purposes.
banking has spurred a new set of fraud schemes
across banking and financial services. In fact, Among the greatest of these threats is payment
the sector experienced the highest number of services. Mobile phones are morphing into wallets,
fraud cases across industries, according to a resulting in the establishment of mobile network
2010 report issued by the Association of Certi- operators (MNOs). Manufacturers, e-commerce
fied Fraud Examiners.13 Fraud analytics, such as providers, retailers and software developers
Quick Take
Keys for Successful Use of Advanced Analytics
• Put a clear strategy in place for analytics implementation.
• Rely on fact-based decision-making.
• Use data that is unique to the bank to carve out competitive advantage.
• Identify process inefficiencies through the use of analytics; use insights to create efficiencies and
improve margins.
• Review and enhance the analytics implementation on a regular basis.
Source: Cognizant Research Center
cognizant reports 5
6. are entering the payments space, threatening company Oltio, created by mobile network
banks’ traditional domain. Meanwhile, payment provider MTN and Standard Bank. Oltio’s payD
old-timers such as PayPal have begun targeting platform, launched in August 2011, generates PIN
the retail point of sale (POS) terminal with devices numbers through customers’ mobile phones for
that scan credit/debit cards. online payments through debit or credit cards.15
Mobile payments are expected to grow expo- Mobility has also shown great potential for banks
nentially over the next few years (see Figure 2), to address the unbanked market. There are an
fueled by strong consumer adoption of smart- estimated 2.5 billion adults that make up the
phones. Among the various mobile payment unbanked category in the developing world.16
options gaining acceptance are mobile wallets, In the U.S., 7.7% of the population remains
NFC-enabled devices, mobile Web payments unbanked. However, mobile phones are begin-
and payment stickers. These trends threaten to ning to reverse this trend.17 For example, in poor
marginalize banks in the payment arena and countries such as Kenya, mobile devices have
impact their revenues. Of greater concern is the helped overcome the lack of infrastructure by
fact that banks have been historically slow to allowing person-to-person money transfer in rural
adopt these types of new technologies due to areas. The service, called M-PESA and offered by
their heavy investment in legacy infrastructure. Safaricom, allows individuals to cost-effectively
pay for cabs, electricity and even for services
For banks to maintain their preferred position such as digging wells. In a mere four years, this
with consumers, it is important that they create phenomenon has transformed banking in the
a strong mobile services presence. Furthermore, African nation. The number of M-PESA outlets
they can extend their already strong positions by skyrocketed from 355 in April 2007 to 27,988 in
participating in emerging consortiums to offer April 2011. During 2010-2011, M-PESA was used for
mobile payments. More importantly, they need to 305.7 million transactions worth $8.53 billion.18
invest in key technological layers that allow mobile
payment systems to work with legacy banking Direct Banks
systems. According to Forrester Research, initial Direct banks are generally Internet-based and,
trends have shown that banks are investing in therefore, tend to have lower operating costs
three areas of mobility: alerts, remote deposits than their brick-and-mortar counterparts. Their
and person-to-person payments.14 ability to offer higher rates on deposit accounts
has fueled phenomenal growth in recent years.
An early example of how banks can leverage inno- Some online-only banks saw their combined
vation can be found in South Africa’s joint venture deposits grow 70% since 2008 to $330 billion.19
Mobile Payments Set to Grow
Gross Value of Mobile Payments Transactions, 2009 - 2015
U.S. $M
$1,000,000
$900,000
$800,000
$700,000
$600,000
$500,000
$400,000
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
$0
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Source: "3Q.2011 Global & Regional Mobile Payments Market Forecast," IE Market Research, 2011.
Figure 2
cognizant reports 6
7. Prominent among these are Ally Financial Inc., year,21 does not take any responsibility in the
American Express Co. and Discover Financial event of a default. Because these Web-enabled
Services, which saw their deposits grow between service providers are not subject to the same
55% and 190% since 2008. ING Direct, recently stringent regulations as banks, this niche is likely
acquired by Capital One, has also created a to remain the province of non-bank entities.
physical presence by opening ING Direct Café
branches in eight U.S. cities.20 The banking activities For retail banks, a key to success will lie in their
offered at these locations include a physical staff ability to effectively manage credit risk while
that assists with account openings and answers reaching out to small businesses. This is reflected
customer questions while offering inexpensive in a February 2012 survey22 by the American
coffee and free Wi-Fi. These banks have also built Sustainable Business Council, which found that
strong mobile banking capabilities. small businesses believe it is more difficult to get
a loan today than it was four years ago.
An example of how innovations in mobile apps
can drive new-age customer service is E-Trade’s Rise of the Millennials
mobile application. The online financial services The millennial23 generation, also known as Gener-
giant provides an application that uses voice ation Y, is changing the rules of engagement with
commands to enable brokerage customers to financial services providers. Millennials are tech-
review their portfolios, initiate trades or get savvy, active social networkers and are committed to
stock quotes. This type of application could planning for their financial future. Their tech
easily be extended to banking customers, as well. savvy is reflected by the fact that they lead the
Moreover, there is strong potential for service adoption of smartphones among all age groups.24
innovations utilizing voice commands. They want to interact with their bank online, yet
they also value good service as they define it.
Crowd-Funding and Peer-To-Peer Lending They also want to plan for the future using sophis-
The purpose of crowd-funding and peer-to- ticated tools and are drawn to online capabilities
peer lending is to build online communities of when researching new banks.25
like-minded individuals who are willing to
lend or borrow at rates or terms unavailable Given these traits, it is critical for banks to
through traditional sources. By avoiding the high develop products and services that meet these
overhead of commercial banks, such initiatives expectations. Millennials have fully embraced
are able to meet the funding requirements of mobility and social media, and banks hoping to
small businesses and start-ups. These commu- meet the expectations of this market segment
nities are small and focused, with users highly must do the same. This means the days of adapt-
active in day-to-day discussions. ing online applications for delivery over a mobile
device have already passed. Native applications
The recent credit crunch gave impetus to these continue to be refined in ways that recognize the
initiatives, with sites such as Kickstarter boasting unique features of smartphones and iPads. Keys
more than a million users. ZestCash is a startup to success will be the effective use of the screen
that provides loans to people with poor or no real estate of these devices and the delivery
credit history. Utilizing extensive data analysis, of information that leverages the anytime,
ZestCash is an example of how technological anywhere nature of mobility.
innovation is making it possible for new players to
enter the market, offering differentiated services. Financial institutions that can extract meaning
The big data revolution is what enables ZestCash from mobile transactions and social media inter-
to crunch through large data volumes to uncover actions — and use these insights to tailor offer-
indicators of customer credit-worthiness. ings relevant to millennials — will be perceived as
having greater business value to this rising demo-
In the UK, Zopa has established itself as a graphic. Indeed, this is a market segment that
successful peer-to-peer lending site and is seen is continuously looking for the “next big thing;”
as a key source for small business financing therefore, banks that hope to maintain a solid
despite the fact that lenders, consisting mainly relationship with millennials can never stop inno-
of ordinary citizens, assume the credit risk. Zopa, vating. Success requires a long-term strategy that
which expects to lend £100 million pounds this incorporates social and mobile channels built on
cognizant reports 7
8. an extensible foundation that can respond to — or For banks, this means prioritizing investments
lead — the next wave of innovation. in areas such as regulatory compliance, core
banking system modernization, channel optimi-
Conclusion zation and data management.26 Although most
Retail banking is undergoing transformative banks face similar challenges, a single solution
change, driven by new regulations, technological will not suit all organizations. Culturally, there-
advancements and changing consumer behavior. fore, banks need to inculcate an organization-
This puts retail banks in an unenviable situation. wide thought process that embraces innovative
They must invest in innovation, while creating thinking. Creating a culture of innovation will be
new revenue opportunities and retaining cus- crucial to making these investments count.
tomer loyalty in the face of increased (traditional
and non-traditional) competition. All of this is
occurring at time when interest margins and prof-
its are under intense pressure.
Footnotes
1
“Mobile Innovation Does the Business in Indonesia,” Sybase, February 2012.
2
“The 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study,” Federal Reserve System, April 2011.
3
“Mobile Banking: A Catalyst for Improving Bank Performance,” Deloitte, 2010.
4
James Richards, “Banking on Mobile Innovation,” Mobinetic, February 2012.
5
Nessa Feddis, “Fees Cover Costs, as Other Income Has Declined,” The New York Times, April 29, 2012.
6
Katherine Field Boccaccio, “Smartphones Shown to Drive Demand for Mobile Banking and Payments,”
Chain Store Age, May 15, 2012.
7
Yeong Kar Yan, “Youths Design Bank for DBS,” The Urban Wire, Oct. 14, 2010.
8
BpaaS refers to the provision of business services encompassing the underlying IT infrastructure,
platform and skilled manpower, to run specific business processes in a virtual, globalized and
distributed operating model.
9
Martin Hilbert and Priscila López, “The World’s Technological Capacity to Store, Communicate, and
Compute Information,” University of Southern California, April 2011.
10
Jim Eckenrode, “Evolving Customer Relationship Management: What’s the Next Best Action?”
Tower Group, February 2011.
11
“Data Equity: Unlocking the Value of Big Data,” Center for Economic and Business Research Ltd.,
April 2012.
12
Akhil Tandulwadikar, “How Analytics Can Transform the U.S. Retail Banking Sector,” Cognizant
Technology Solutions, 2011.
13
“Fraud Detection Using Data Analytics in the Banking Industry,” ACL Services Ltd., 2010.
14
“Retail Banks Increasing Mobile Investment,” Forrester Research, Inc. and Consumer Bankers
Association, June 20, 2012.
15
“SA Firm Up for Mobile Innovation Award,” SouthAfrica.info, February 2012.
16
“Banking the Unbanked: The Role of Mobile Financial Services,” World Economic Forum and Boston
Consulting Group, May 2011.
17
Tim Chen, “Why 7.7% of Americans Are Unbanked,” Forbes.com, Jan. 3, 2011.
cognizant reports 8