The largest lender in
South-East Asia by assets, DBS Bank, has had a marked growth in its
mobile banking services and the lender is focusing on its m-banking
operations heavily. Head of consumer and internet banking at DBS,
Sandeep Lal, tells RBI why m-banking has become
increasingly important
Go deeper with GlobalData
The importance of mobile banking is
consistently on the rise, so says Sandeep Lal, head of consumer and
internet banking at DBS, Singapore.
“Increase in bandwidth and sweeping
changes with the introduction of powerful nd highly functional
mobile devices in the ast two to three years, such as the iPhone,
Androids, iPad and other tablets have made ‘banking on-the-go’
possible, by leveraging mobile internet capabilities,” says
Lal.
From the standpoint of technological
advancements, many banks have turned to new technology to provide
innovative and convenient services to meet customer expectations,
and this has thereby also led to the increase of network efficiency
and reach.
The move towards self-service banking
has dominated the banking industry globally, “as banks focused on
bringing greater convenience to customers at all times”, says
Lal.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalData“Early efforts at self-service banking
focused on channels such as the ATMs that give customers faster
access to simple transactions such as cash withdrawal.
“Banks are then able to deploy
financial advisors at the branches to address customers’ complex
banking needs,” Lal adds.
DBS launched its first m-banking
service in 2000 “ahead of the curve”, says Lal.
“However, at that time mobile phone
technology was not advanced enough to provide a positive user
experience,” Lal adds.
In early 2009, DBS detected an
inflexion point – “the new generation of Smartphones provided a
much better user experience”.
“This was driven by the dramatic
improvements in usability, which Apple’s iPhone offered –
accompanied by reasonably priced data plans,” says Lal.
DBS launched its first consumer mobile
application, DBS Indulge, in Feb 2010.
“This was quickly followed by our
m-banking application in April 2010, and DBS Shopper in Oct 2010,”
Lal says.
More than 250,000 users signed up for
DBS’s m-banking service within the first year of its launch, making
DBS m-banking the most popular m-banking platform in Singapore.
Lal says that with more than 70% of
all the mobile internet traffic in Singapore coming from
Smartphones in 2010, it is clear that most customers are
comfortable using handsets to access online services on the go.
M-banking services are especially
popular with the youth. “More than 30% of individuals in Singapore
are below 24 years old and are savvy with technology,” says
Lal.
This primary focus for the youth
segment is convenience. “More than 60% in Singapore between 13 and
25 years spend 6 to 15 hours out of home. Hence, m-banking services
are well-positioned to address this segment’s banking needs,” adds
Lal.
M-banking also works as an extension
of regular banking and marketing channels.
“Apart from the brick and mortar
channels, internet and mobile financial services can increase
banks’ reach to the customer,” says Lal.
“It can optimise the utilisation of
physical channels by making it easier for customers to conduct
transactions online.”
Similarly, mobile apps can “help
increase the awareness of benefits such as credit card offers or
rewards, by making them more accessible and current,” Lal adds.
But it is important for banks to
provide a consistent user experience across platforms.
The standardised communication
protocol to receive, authenticate and validate transactions such as
remittance, helps to optimise the development cost of future mobile
financial services, according to Lal.
“Almost all m-banking services focus
on four common customer needs – bill payment, transfer of funds and
checking account summaries and its transaction history,” says
Lal.
“M-banking apps in Singapore leverage
on location-based technologies such as global positioning system
that points users to the nearest ATMs and credit card
privileges.”
Digital channels also allow banks to
“track usage patterns, identify consumer habits and generate
insights that can help shape future banking services”, adds
Lal.
However, financial institutions must
remain vigilant on the customers’ user experience for these digital
channels, says Lal.
“Most service improvements in today’s
m-banking applications are expressed in ratings and reviews on
online stores, which are measures of customer sentiment,” says
Lal.
According to Lal, customer feedback
offers “broad parameters on the future development needs of the
apps”, as well as highlights the importance of staying relevant to
customer needs for any bank “aspiring to use digital technologies
to connect with an increasingly technologically savvy
customer”.
