The British Bankers Association (BBA) and Accenture in a newreport have warned that banks must concentrate on embracing new digital bankingtechnologies that will allow them to offer better and more personalisedservices to customers as well as cutting costs because it allows banks to relyless on the more expense physical branch.
In addition to commenting on the value of embracing digitalbanking technology, the BBA and Accenture report commented on the regulatorylandscape and urged regulators in the UK to ensure that all organizationsoffering banking services are regulated in the same way to give consumerscertainty when it comes to their important banking and payment needs. Furthermore,the report urged regulators to be aware of the threat posed to financialstability from providers of banking services not covered by existing regulation.
Commenting on the report, BBA Chief Anthony Browne said, “Thisis a tipping point for the banking world. On the one hand this is a time ofgreat opportunity for our industry, as new types of technology allow us toserve our customers better and more efficiently than ever before. But thischange poses challenges too. Technology is breaking down the traditionalbanking model and new entrants are changing our perceptions about what weconsider a bank to be. More choice is good news for all, but it’s vital thatregulators provide a level playing field giving customers the same robustprotection wherever they choose to bank.”
While the results of the study are not particularly new, theindustry is in agreement about the need to embrace new banking technologies, itshows that there is a regulatory angle to the proliferation of new technologiesthat is often overlooked in the excitement but should always be considered.
Overview by Tristan Hugo-Webb, Associate Director, Global Payments for Mercator Advisory Group
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