Historically, financial institutions have adopted technology with a best-of-breed approach, utilizing different platforms from different vendors. This is especially true in check processing, where multiple platforms are leveraged to support a single financial transaction or payment type. The end result is multiple platforms, multiple vendors, multiple support resources – and multiple headaches.To process a single check, a Read More
Given the proliferation of printers in banking – a large institution may have tens of thousands in facilities spread across the country – printer management needs to play a critical role in the ongoing war against hackers.This issue recently came to the forefront in a hack at Bangladesh Bank that resulted in the loss of $81 million. Read More
Have you heard this from a community banker? “We are uniquely positioned to service the affluent customer.” And, “Our service is second to none.”Don’t fool yourself. Your prospects don’t know about your service unless it causes problems for them. And, very few community-based financial institutions are more uniquely positioned to serve the affluent class than are their Read More
While digital banking is one of the fastest growing channels for financial services, banking employees are still far and away the preferred interaction point. Especially when it comes to more complex financial needs – loans, investments or debt management – the primary channel banking consumers still use for researching and purchasing products is people. For example, a Read More
It used to be that bank CEOs wore their lack of technology expertise as a badge of honor: “Hey, I came up through the lofty halls of Credit; I don’t need to know anything about technology.” However, times change. Now that product delivery, service, underwriting, sales execution and marketing are all inextricably attached to technology, today’s CEOs Read More
The financial services industry is evolving at an exponential rate in this age of digital transformation. Shifting customer expectations, disruptive technology and demanding regulatory requirements are constantly reshaping the sector. Many banks are finding that their current infrastructure and platforms are simply not capable of supporting the proliferation of user-centric, omnichannel and omnipresent capabilities that customers have Read More
Current payments systems are more sophisticated than their predecessors, with more functionality, higher transaction volumes and continuously operating, open environments. As banks and their partners have rapidly expanded these payments infrastructures, many have failed to incrementally grow their testing practices to keep up with the pace of change. Many are only testing a small portion of their Read More
Sometimes, a simple shift in perspective makes a big difference. That’s what banks are discovering when their contact centers utilize a method of analysis known as “customer journey mapping.” By looking at their internal processes from the customer’s point of view, these institutions are improving both contact center efficiency and customer satisfaction.The practice of customer journey mapping Read More
The “open office” is a growing trend in corporate America. Eliminating walls and private offices is proving to be popular with CEOs, such as Citigroup’s Michael Corbat, who are certain of an open office’s cost reduction benefits and hopeful of its collaboration potential. Yet, the open office has also delivered some unintended consequences, such as increased noise Read More
When it comes to selecting technology solutions and services, do banks pursue opportunities that sacrifice quality? It might be an unpopular opinion, but many times the answer is “yes.”Those financial institutions that take the least-costly route are often the same ones that have compliance issues, bad audits, technology performance issues and upset customers within a year, all Read More
Exceptions are part of every operation in all businesses, but they are a source of particular concern for financial institutions (FIs). Regulatory examinations concentrate on exceptions to regulatory requirements and exceptions to best practices. The fiduciary responsibility that banks have concerning their clients’ money means that operational exceptions carry risk for financial liability and brand integrity. Exceptions Read More
We are seeing a very fundamental shift in the focus and importance of vendor management. To a large extent, this is the result of the confluence of events that, taken together, point to the need to change the entire approach to vendor management at banks.First, we have become an industry that has outsourced. This is not a Read More
Core data processing at one time was a massive and diverse business that included dozens, if not hundreds of organizations. Some of the most recognized names in financial technology once operated vast and large data centers scattered about the United States.Recently, I found a copy of the now-defunct Federal Savings & Loan Insurance Corp. magazine from 1985 Read More
Many banks have attempted to apply lean principles to their operations to reduce wasteful activities and inefficiencies. In these operations, management applies lean techniques to a problem area and then charters a team, which uses brainstorming, technology or other approaches to address the issues. The team presents its plan to management for approval, then implements the ideas. Read More
In today’s sluggish economy, banks are looking under every rock for cost savings in order to show better earnings growth. One source of expense control, however, has been hiding in plain sight: the cost of courier services. With Branch Image Capture (BIC) and Remote Deposit Capture (RDC) technology, physical copies of checks are no longer necessary to Read More
Typically, data conversion is costly. It’s no secret that migrating to a new system, whether because of a merger or acquisition, or because it’s simply time to replace a legacy archival system, can be a time-consuming and risk-heavy undertaking. Literally millions of images, reports, statements and signature cards–which must be retained in a financial institution for ongoing Read More
Apart from government agencies, financial institutions endure some of the most onerous regulations when it comes to managing information, as well as the high volumes of paperwork that typical business transactions require. While banks have tried to reduce paperwork costs over the last few years, the burden of managing document-based information is still a significant challenge. Take, Read More
As the role of technology grows in retail banking, innovation is no longer simply about online, mobile or even omnichannel, say the judges in the BAI-Infosys Finacle Global Banking Innovation Awards 2015. “2015 feels like a year in which retail banks have finally figured that things will never be the same again,” says Ed Carrell, managing director, Read More
For most banks, their retail franchise is the most valuable part of the company. Ask any M&A professional. Yet, because of the way many banks do business unit accounting, it is often the least profitable, especially over the last few years when the accounting value of deposits has declined precipitously. This presents a difficult issue for managers. Read More
Banks, especially small and mid-sized banks, are currently dealing with several difficult cost and growth challenges. Low interest rates, regulatory constraints on products and services, high costs for compliance and cybersecurity put significant pressure on their bottom-line. In addition, they face powerful new entrants, e.g., for payment systems and finance companies who seek to find and exploit Read More
