Financial services is undergoing a paradigm shift that is forcing incumbent retail banks to rethink growth strategies as they struggle to remain relevant. Growing competition from BigTechs, FinTech firms, and challenger banks has added to the complexity created by increasingly stringent regulatory and compliance requirements. Customers now expect a seamless customer journey and personalized offerings because they have become accustomed to top-notch individualized service from GAFA giants Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon. The changing ecosystem offers established banks new, unexplored opportunities and encourages a transition beyond traditional products to meet the exacting requirements of today’s customers. Bank collaboration with FinTech and RegTech partners is becoming commonplace. Incumbents are exploring point-of-sale financing and unsecured consumer lending, while they also boost their digital channel competencies to reach a broader customer base. Banks are beginning to accept open APIs and are working with third-party specialists to create an open shared marketplace. Technological advancements such as AI are fueling efforts to evolve customer onboarding and touchpoint processes. Increasingly, banks are turning to design thinking methodology to understand the customer journey, extract deep insights, and develop a more refined user experience across the customer lifecycle.
Our analysis of the top retail banking trends for 2020 offers a glimpse into the fast-changing banking ecosystem and explores the tools and solutions being used to face new-age challenges.