Branches and Self-Service

The Help Desk is officially open for business—your business.

What will the branch of the future look like? We live in a world enabled by technology like never before.

Less than two weeks ago, Toys “R” Us announced it would shutter its 875 U.

It’s clear the decline in branch transactions has big implications for branch staffing and organizational roles.

A sophisticated crime where thieves install malicious software and/or hardware at ATMs—and force the machines to spit out up to 40 bills every 30 seconds—has for some time threatened banks in Europe and Asia.

So, then: Was 2017 a triumph or a trash fire? In at least one sector, it was a literal fire sale—as the precipitous (if long-predicted) demise of the retail store made headlines, even as e-commerce titans such as Amazon made a mint.

For many banks, retail is in danger of becoming a zombie business.

Much press coverage has been devoted to the dominance of digital banking channels and how it almost renders the physical bank branch network obsolete.

Predicting key trends in any industry—and financial services is no exception—means taking to account uncertainty, reality and possibility.

Branch transformation is hot.