Like other industries did before it, retail banking is riding a bucking bronco of digital transformation. While customer satisfaction levels drop and government rules and regulations continue to expand, retail banking seeks new ways to adapt to the massive changes in how consumers interact and use financial products and services.
However, unlike other industries such as book publishing that have been rocked by the tsunami of digital changes in the marketplace, companies in the banking sector also have to comply with extensive regulations intended to protect consumers. In confronting this new landscape, banks are looking at better ways to use their existing data in real-time to improve customer experience and loyalty, comply with a growing number of government rules and privacy laws, and consolidate disparate IT systems in their current infrastructure. Banks must provide a seamless experience for customers no matter which product or service they choose.
Retail banks have gone digital — using online channels (e.g., mobile, web, etc.) and new technology to improve customer experiences and employee productivity. Common programming languages used in banking include Python, C++ for speed, C# for trading platforms, Java, Scala, HTML5, and .NET. This allows the institutions to introduce new features and services rapidly without the need for constant updates from vendors. It also reduces errors that are due to lack of manual oversight.
The network becomes more virtualized — rather than each router and switch on the system with set data paths solely on the destination address, a centralized controller creates the optimal path based on predetermined criteria set by the network operator. Operations can be managed with a small set of software tools, allowing users to achieve business objectives and KPIs faster and easier as the organization becomes more adaptable to change.
In essence, banks are becoming technology companies — they want to embrace a software-defined business structure because they have no other choice. Customers don’t think of banks as an offline or online institution. To them, it is all the same, and they expect to have a positive experience no matter which channel they use to obtain service. If a consumer does all their banking through an app on an iPhone, that becomes their entire banking experience. Without a robust mobile app, banks are short-changing their future because customers will gravitate to more technology-savvy institutions.