From the Financial Brand:
GT Bank has rolled out a new Facebook app that allows prospective customers to open new accounts and immediately get their account numbers. Is this the wave of the future?
Any Nigerian that wants to open a new bank account can now do so on Facebook. Well… sort of. They can at least get the process started on Facebook.
To open a new account with GT Bank’s new Facebook app, all users have to do is complete a remarkably simply three-question form. Tell them which type of account you want, give them your email address and specify which state you’re from, and you will be issued an “account number” instantly.
That’s the easy part.
The rest of the process is pretty much like opening an account at any other institution anywhere else in the world. You’ve got to gather up your most recent power bill, your driver’s license and two passport photos (who doesn’t have a couple of those just laying around?), then trudge all that stuff down to the customer service desk at one of GT’s branch locations. Oh, and don’t forget to printout your “transaction code” that the Facebook app generates as a confirmation, which apparently is only good for two weeks.
The idea of using social media to extend customer and member interactions has been floating around for some time. A case can be made for added benefits, such as a greater potential reach and added convenience offered by a social media connection. Of course, financial institutions need to be mindful of the real or perceived security issues, as well as concerns about selling or otherwise sharing contact list information, potentially creating reputational risk issues.
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