Emirates NBD has unveiled a stunning Future Lab within Dubai’s Emirates Towers, highlighting the bank’s ongoing drive towards digital innovation and multichannel transformation. Is this impressive branch a premonition of the shape of things to come? Douglas Blakey takes a closer look

“It is quite fantastic – the best thing we have done and the reaction has been amazing,” Michael Allen tells RBI.

“What I was pleased about was that  the bank was brave. This project has taken a lot of guts in a region where banks have a reputation for being conservative, but they really went for it.”

Allen is talking animatedly about Emirates NBD’s Future Lab in Dubai’s famous Emirates Towers complex. And when one looks at the branch, his enthusiasm is understandable.

Designed by allen international as a key initiative of Emirates DBD’s digital strategy, the branch is designed to accelerate the development of next-generation digital and mobile banking services with the aim of increasing digital banking adoption in the UAE.

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Richard Benson, the allen international director in charge of the project, tells RBI: “The innovative digital branch incorporates both physical and digital designs, and three seamlessly connected zones.”

The Digital Banking Zone offers self-service banking facilities where customers can use intelligent teller machines providing video connections to remote service staff against a backdrop of a large digital wall.

“This wall creates a truly immersive experience, and presents allen international’s unique digital ‘Horizons’ animations, providing a strong visual expression of Emirates NBD’s coverage and position as the UAE’s bank of choice.

“It also demonstrates the brands commitment to delivering innovation and convenience across Dubai and the UAE 24-7.”

The Future Banking Zone is the first of its kind in the UAE, and showcases digital innovations developed with technology partners such as the Visa Connected Car, MasterCard’s Virtual Shopping Experience, and SAP’s Augmented Reality Real Estate and Mortgage Digital Solutions.

This changing interactive exhibition space will provide a laboratory environment for customers to trial and collaborate in the development of innovative products and service pre-launches.

Benson adds: “The design utilises all four aspects of allen international’s philosophy and expertise.

“It provides fully immersive physical and digital interactions, it represents the very unique essence of the Emirates NBD brand personality, and inspires the optimum staff culture and behaviours.

“This all combines to create a connected customer experience unlike any other – a real glimpse of future banking, today.”
The Relationship Zone is the consultation area of the branch and provides a relaxed environment for customers to browse the bank’s products and services and meet one-to-one with Emirates NBD’s financial advisers.

The branch has also been fully designed to provide universal accessibility with service points, interactive tablets, meeting pods and assisted transaction counters.

Emirates DBD’s digital drive accelerates

Twitter: Emirates NBD has partnered with Twitter to become the first bank in the region to offer customer support features through its Twitter account.

Eva: This is the first AI-based chatbot virtual assistant for banking in the Middle East and North Africa. The bank’s Future Lab is piloting Eva’s voice capabilities via a customer user group. The test version includes chatbot capabilities via the bank’s Facebook messenger, and will soon to be extended to its mobile banking app.

An enhanced mePAY cash transfer service: This facility enables cash transfers to recipients who are not Emirates NBD customers or do not have a bank account. The expanded offering, which works via any Emirates NBD ATM or customers’ mobile banking app, enables customers to transfer cash to anyone in the UAE using only the recipient’s mobile number.

Pepper: A humanoid artificial intelligence robot adds a fun element to customer engagement.