The most outstanding feature of retail banking is the facilities offered to the consumers. It has been the most convenient banking system, exactly from ATM’s to debit cards to credit cards to online and phone banking.
The last decade has observed the appearance of Retail Banking in the global front. It is persistently changing, and the ongoing global fiscal crisis has put an impact on the directive adjoining the banking industry. The key medium for change is the emergence of mobile technology. It signifies the largest opportunity to retail banking, since the beginning of the credit card in the past. A new relationship is being labeled between the bank and its customers.
Retail banking and its forecast
In the past, the banks act as a transaction medium where people save, reclaim and borrow money. European banks have made substantial investments mounting their branches into financial supermarkets. The shift to mobile banking is being publicized greatly by market analysts. According to a recent journal, global mobile payment transaction values are expected to exceed a market worth of $600 billion with more than 400 million users by 2016. These forecasts signify a modal shift in the retail banking and a prospective opportunity for novel players to meet the requirements of the mobile-friendly consumers.
Transformation of the key areas
The three key areas in retail banking i.e. payments, products and customer service will be transformed by mobile devices. Payments can be modernized and improved by mobile devices. Many banks in various parts of the world have moved quickly to roll out m-payments. Mobile payments are emerging as an acknowledged way of life, and many more mobile payment services are being constantly emphasized in the media. The acceptance of the m-payments has been recognized as a simple payment or money transfer utility. With the change, the Smartphone has successfully incorporated the payment utility into other applications. It has enabled banks to add true value to the online shopping experience, for instance displaying real-time balance on the Smartphone’s screen.
Emergence of new technology
With the emergence of every new technology, new threats and challenges are equally associated. Some people consider mobile handsets to be far less protected than the average means of banking. However, this wrong approach would force to develop an entirely new security system exclusively for mobile apps. Banks need to assess their protection systems and revamp a common system for all means of communication with the customer. Key fraud indicators can be easily probed by checking customer location data, resolved with least trouble. The Smartphone could initiate to reinstate the aging risk-prone systems of personal and PIN details, which have been the foundation of verification in banks for the last so many decades.
Digital technology is one of the prime topics in the retail banking world. It will revolutionize the way how banks draw and maintain their customers. The changes are undeniably global, and ‘Drive-to-Digital’ appeared as the main issue in this year’s retail banking trends. The ever-increasing development in mobile banking will certainly transform the conventional channels with the branch. No doubt, many customers still rate face-to-face communication in banking, particularly when it comes to organizing for more compound banking products.