Retail Banking Innovation Playbook Asia-Pacific: Trends and Drivers, Innovation, Products, Channels, Processes

Asian banks have been described as innovation followers, but this has changed over the past few years. With the ongoing crisis in the West and small budgets, Asian banks have leapfrogged in the development of their retail banking and payments propositions, leading in the adoption of mobile technologies and social media, but also in driving process efficiency through business process reengineering and automation.

Driven by changing customer needs, retail banks in Asia are now focusing on what customers actually want, rather than making guesses, and are increasingly catering specifically to the needs of the Asian population. Banks have been fine-tuning specific channels to deliver a clear value proposition and take the strengths and weaknesses of each channel into account. As a result of the financial crisis, Asian banks have also shifted their focus from expensive, large-scale technology projects which did not live up to expectations towards getting existing processes and technologies right.

Key Highlights

• Channel innovation and development for both brick-and-mortar branches and digital channels was one of the key themes in retail banking in Asia-Pacific in 2012.

• Despite the build-up behind the potential of the mobile channel, improving the internet banking channel and monetizing it remained the key priority for many retail banks.

• An emphasis was placed on customer experience and the intuitive design of online propositions. Key objectives were to improve the ease of navigation, usability, intuitiveness and, therefore, adoption.

• Multichannel capabilities have been discussed for years but progress is limited to small scale initiatives in select channels. Pursuing an integrated channel strategy is limited by siloed structures, rigid processes and a lack of processing and communication.

• Cross-industry partnerships are becoming more common, particularly in the payments space. Building infrastructure together, expanding cross-border transactions or launching new, multi-functionality payment products and services are the key drivers for cooperation.

• Operational risk was the top priority in the risk management area. Increased awareness and intensified regulation around anti-money laundering (AML) left its mark on banks. Improving monitoring capabilities and KYC procedures were among the most commonly launched initiatives.

• Loan approval, account opening processes and KYC/AML compliance are the most active operational initiative areas in retail banking. These span automated decision-making, customer onboarding, document management, centralization of operations and outsourcing.

Report Scope

This report will allow you:

• To get yourself up-to-speed with the rapid development of retail banking innovation in Asia Pacific.
• To identify the hot spots of bank executives' attention in product development, channels, payments and processes.
• To source for new ideas from life examples which have made a real impact on the business of the implementing banks.
• To understand the approach some banks have towards conceptualisation, development and implementation of new projects.

Reasons to Buy

• Provides detailed analysis on channel development, product development, payments and business process reengineering in retail banking in Asia Pacific.
• There is a special emphasis on the opportunities available in both mature and emerging markets in Asia.
• The report has a key focus on channel distribution, which is used to increase the adoption of alternative channels and increase sales and process efficiency in branches.
• Provides in-depth analysis of challenges faced by retail banks to increase customer loyalty and process efficiency.