Efma & Backbase present

Omni-channel
banking
The digital
transformation
roadmap

Efma & Backbase present

Omni-channel
banking
The digital
transformation
roadmap

Preface

Contents

Customer behavior is changing. New challengers

Executive summary

05

in the financial space are fighting for a piece of the

01 _ Who is the innovation leader in banking?

07

02 _ New competitors in banking:

11

market, and theyre fighting for customers of their

own. Its clear for everyone that delivering a truly
omni-channel experience is more important and

The disrupters

more relevant than ever before. But how can financial

institutions achieve this and acquire the right tools

to effectively compete?

Beat

This report presents selected results from a survey

03 _ Customer experience:

Recommendation:

them at their own game

of more than a hundred C-level bankers from across

The key ingredients

the globe, who agreed to answer a series of questions

Recommendation: 

about the current state of the financial services industry,

Start

as well as what the future holds. We wanted to further

understand the financial landscape from a traditional

04 _ Omni-channel and the changing channel mix

bankers point of view, and from new angles according

to regional differences.

Pursue

We believe this data will offer a revealing insight into

05 _ Mobiles impact on online sales

what traditional banks think, and what they need to do

and share of wallet

to stem the tide of change and embrace innovation.

Recommendation:

with the customer experience

14

17

18

23

Recommendation: 

an omni-channel delivery model

25

31

Optimize for the omni-channel sale

32

_ Linking the channels: omni-channel journeys

33

_ Meet your customer halfway

34

06 _ Regaining control

37

in the era of digitization

Recommendation: 

Regain

control over your digital strategy

07 _ Conclusion:

39

43

Banks need to start their journey now

Notes

44

About Backbase

45

About Efma

45

Backbase in the Forrester Wave

46

Executive summary

The financial services market is going through

Omni-channel and the changing channel mix

many changes. New challengers have appeared

100% of the banks in the survey results rate the

and are looking for a slice of the market. In addition,

creation of a seamless omni-channel experience

customers are more demanding and more informed,

important to extremely important.

expecting convenience and simplicity when it

comes to financial services, particularly online

Mobiles impact on online sales and share of wallet

and via mobile devices. People love digital services

Customer behavior is affecting the channel mix and

such as Netflix, Amazon, and Uber because theyre

revenue generation. The survey results reveal that

easy to use and deliver great customer experiences.

mobile channels record the highest increase in

They deliver 10 times more convenience and better

revenue generation.

customer experiences than the status quo, and are

therefore winning the market. Its only a matter of

Regaining control in the era of digitization

time before the 10-times-better bank is founded,

To succeed in the market and beat the disrupters,

a thought thats on the radar of every banker.

banks should regain control of business strategy,

and be able to build and deliver unique experiences

This brings us to this report by Backbase and Efma

with their customers.

Omni-channel banking: The digital transformation

roadmap which outlines the journey of creating the
10-times-better bank, providing a detailed analysis
of how banks can begin their digital journey.
The report is based on the Omni-Channel Banking
Survey conducted by Backbase and Efma, and
completed by more than a hundred C-level bankers
from across the globe. The report also contains the
findings from more than 15 interviews with bank
executives, as well as the 7 Habits of a Highly Successful
Digital Bank, written by Roberto Ferrari, general manager
of CheBanca!, the No 1 digital bank in Italy. The report

Throughout this report you will find excerpts from

highlights five important takeaways:

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank written

by Roberto Ferrari, the CheBanca! general manager.

New competitors in banking: The disrupters

Discover how and why the market is changing

Launched from scratch in 2008, CheBanca! is a new

how its driven by customers, and by tech companies,

generation of multi-channel and digital bank. In 2013,

startups, and neobanks.

2014 and 2015, CheBanca! was recognized as being the

best digital bank in Italy. Roberto Ferrari has decided to

Customer experience: The key ingredients

share the habits that make a successful digital bank.

Understand how customer loyalty and retention is

affected by a mix of superior digital experiences

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank was first

and human interaction, and how delivering this

published on The Financial Brand ( http://thefinancialbrand.

mix is the primary challenge.

com/51854/digital-banking-success-strategies/ ).
Some minor changes have been made to reflect this
reports style considerations.

/ 05

/ 06

1_ How would you

36% Leaders

1% Dont know

29% Fast followers

rate your bank

when it comes to
innovation?

34% Followers

2_ H ow is your
0

20

40

60

80

Digital channels
Customer Service &
Experience
New Products & Services
Physical channels
distribution
Core Systems & Processes
Increase

No change

Decrease

100

bank investing
in 2015?

CHAPTER _

01

Who is the
innovation leader
in banking?
/ 07

You can only blame yourself

if someone else is smarter.
Karlis Mikoss,
branch channel manager, SEB

We asked our survey respondents how

they would rate themselves with regards
to innovation.
Their answers reveal that most banks dont see
themselves as leaders when it comes to innovation,
with more than half of respondents classifying
themselves as followers or fast followers.
Historically, banks have arguably felt more comfortable
being second or third in regards to being innovative,
but definitely not first. Times have changed. With the
digital-native customer, a younger demographic and
various threats of digital disruption, banks are beginning
to improve.
This is reflected in the results, which show that 36% of
respondents now classify themselves as a leader when
it comes to innovation, which is a great leap forward
over previous years. This shift in self-perception reflects
a change in market economic conditions, a realization

1
_ Most banks are followers
when it comes to innovation.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

2
_ Digital Channels, followed by
Customer Service & Experience to
get more budget in 2015.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

of the importance of innovation in banking, knowledge

of the threat from technology firms, and the fast growth
of banking innovation in developing countries. It also
reflects an awareness of the increasing demands of
consumers, who are banking more via digital channels.

This confidence has led to increased budgets for

digital channels, as well as customer service and
experience (more than 90% of respondents chose
digital channels as a future area of budget increase).
The survey reveals that budget increases for digital
endeavors, at least for most financial institutions,
will come from physical channels.

/ 08

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#1

Work with fintech startups

Incumbent banking organizations need to streamline their operations
and narrow business and product development focus. They cant be all
things for all people, but instead need to cut oversized operating and
distribution costs.
There will continue to be smarter and faster players in a better position
to deliver state-of-the-art vertical solutions and user experiences
eating away at the edges of incumbent organizations. With regards to
fintech startups, it may be better to partner than to compete. In other
words, part of the product/service development of a successful digital
bank should be outsourced.
As with many of the 7 habits, this is a complete change of mindset.
Its not just about setting up an incubator or even a $100m VC fund.
Its about integrating third party customer solutions into your offering.
Or, if you want and can, its about buying them entirely and having
their solution as a key part of your own business proposition. An example
of such a partnership in the US and overseas is Apple Pay.

/ 09

/ 10

25% Tech companies

25

22% Startups
20

19% Neobanks of existing players

15

12% Retailers
10

9% Telcos
7% I dont see any threat
of industry disruption
6% Others
5

3_ W hen it comes to

industry disruption,
who or what do you
see as the biggest
threat? Please
choose your top 3.

CHAPTER _

02

New competitors
in banking:
The disrupters
/ 11

Neobanks, startups and

tech companies are a threat
to financial companies,
but theyre not the biggest.
The biggest threat is
ourselves. Banks are not
spending enough time
innovating. We are making
ourselves irrelevant
to tech-savvy customers.

Typically, industry disruption occurs faster

than anyone anticipates.

Alex Jimenez,
SVP, digital and innovation, Rockland Trust

Fintech companies in 2014 raised nearly $3bn, more

Lets use Uber as an example. Was the taxi market

ready for disruption? Perhaps it was, but nobody was
arguing for it as strongly as those who are now chanting
for disruption to financial services. Uber is booming,
and rumour has it that its moving into banking. Yet, the
current Uber of banking, Lending Club, is getting even
stronger. Lending Club went IPO in December 2014,
opening with a 56% increase in share price, giving it
a $9bn valuation, lifting the companys market value
higher than all but 13 US banks.[1]

than tripling the $930m invested globally in fintech

in 2008, and its growing for a reason. They see
opportunities to win from existing players, especially
from traditional banks. This is because the new players
can do digital 10 times better than the status quo.
Banks are increasing their innovation efforts and digital
investments because the market is moving, driven by
customers, but also by outsiders entering the financial

3
_ Biggest threat of industry
disruption will be from tech companies,
startups, and neobanks.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

space. The biggest threat of industry disruption is

coming from tech companies, startups, and neobanks.
However, Alex Jimenez quote at the top of this page
suggests a different threat.

Unbundling of a bank
This is a widely used image that brilliantly captures the
disruptive climate of banking, where new fintech companies
are taking business from traditional banks.

/ 12

The survey results confirm that tech companies are

Alongside these giants of technology, startups are

leading the list of industry disrupters. Apple holds

flourishing. For every product and service from a

the most consumer credit cards, globally, and is

traditional financial institution, there are dozens

rapidly expanding its iTunes ecosystem and Apple

(if not hundreds) of fintech startups competing for

Pay payment network. Google continues to experiment

a share in their very own niche, and most of the

with its own mobile wallet and is making it easier

time with a digital-only focus. Non-bank challengers

to send money via Gmail. Meanwhile, PayPal is

are operationally built for continuous innovation,

handling more international transfers than the top

and frequently upgrade their arsenal of IT tools,

five banks combined, and Facebook and Amazon

strategies, and skilled personnel.

are also looking for a piece of the market.

Chapter _ 02 New competitors in banking: The disrupters

I dont consider disrupters

as threats. I see these as
options for the consumers
and it challenges the banks to
do better. In this day and age,
every new technology or idea
is an innovation. We should
applaud such innovation, as
it makes life more colorful.

/ 13

Ultimately, its for the benefit

of the consumer.
Alain Boey
SVP/head of transformation,
Bank Simpanan Nasional

A market up for grabs?

TransferWise aggressively pushing
its alternative in London, UK.

They leverage the existing banking and payments

players. To combat this shift, some institutions may

infrastructure and maintain a narrow focus on their

take a radically new approach to distribution, combining

value-added offerings by virtue of the marginal role they

a simpler, yet more comprehensive branch offering

play within this infrastructure. They are often more agile

with integrated digital services. Alternatively, some

and efficient, launching updates with remarkable speed.

firms may acquire some of these new technology

For example, Adyen, a payments technology company

startups to improve agility and reduce risk.

that recently raised $250m at a $1.5bn valuation [2],

releases updated payments software every two to three

According to Ernst & Young [4], the good news is

weeks. Non-bank challengers also serve their customers

that consumer confidence in the banking industry

much faster: Square and PayPal enable merchants to

is on the rise, with 93% of survey respondents

begin accepting payments within a day, which is almost

reporting moderate or complete trust in their banks.

a week faster than most banks.

Likewise, 77% of customers are satisfied enough

with their banking relationship to recommend their

According to Accenture research , 35% of banks

primary provider. Moreover, the global economic

market share in North America could be in play by 2020

recovery appears to be taking hold, and banks are

as traditional branch banking gives way to new, digital

among the beneficiaries.

[3]

The challenge, however, is that an increasing number of

Many fintech challengers offer viable alternatives to

financial service providers are competing for the same

consumers on specific banking use cases, but they

customers. Emerging technology and the increasing

dont offer a one-stop-shop banking experience, which

use of mobile devices for banking and payments

is what most customers demand. Yet, challengers

are making it easier for new entrants to exploit areas

move fast because they have the right tools to expand

of dissatisfaction and underinvestment. Customers

and invest in marketing, and they understand (and win)

have more options than ever and do not view banks

when it comes to digital.

as having a significant advantage over newer types

of banks and technology companies, even when it

Finally, neobanks. We see two categories: startups

comes to financial advice.

that truly want to become a bank (like Simple or Moven),

or neobanks founded by traditional FIs. So far, the

/ 14

The image [5] on page 12 was trending among fintech

likes of Simple and Moven have proved unsuccessful

professionals at the end of 2014. It revealed how every

in winning a significant number of customers. Simple

product line of a bank was under attack by startups.

has been acquired and is now the digital part of BBVA,

We often refer to these companies as fintech startups,

while Moven is moving towards a technology vendor

but theyre growing quickly. Lending Club went IPO in

role in reselling to FIs around the world. Neobanks that

December 2014 and the market cap is now $6.84bn .

are founded by traditional FIs can innovate quicker than

Its the same for Wealthfront, with over two billion

their counterparts and reach a new (mostly millennial)

assets under management, making it the same size

audience. Examples are Touch Bank by OTP Group, or

as a regular bank.

Hello bank by BNP Paribas.

[6]

Recommendation:

Beat them at their own game

Fintech startups, technology companies, and neobanks

1/ Start with the customer experience.

are after a piece of the market, and their differentiator

2/ Pursue an omni-channel delivery model.

operates at a digital level. Going digital requires a

3/ Make mobile the key growth channel.

fundamental change in how banks and credit unions

4/ Regain control over digital strategy.

learn about, interact with, and serve consumers.

The key for existing FIs in retaining market share

The most important step is shifting the strategic

(and customers) is to beat the disrupters at their

focus so that the customer is always the first thing

own game, and they can achieve this by becoming a

you think about, not the channel. Traditional banks

disrupter themselves, and by rethinking their digital

still think in silos, but customers dont. FIs should

strategy. This means focusing on four key points:

deliver seamless, ubiquitous, instant experiences that

are transparent, personal and relevant. Successful
digital transformation begins with an understanding
of digital consumer behavior, preferences, and choices

Chapter _ 02 New competitors in banking: The disrupters

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#2

Be a challenger
Challenge your own business model and your traditional way of working.
Firms that failed to challenge their incumbent businesses include Kodak,
Blockbuster, Nokia, Blackberry and many others. Incumbent managers
and organizations tend to defend their own profit sources, and their
well-proven (in the past) business models.
Financial service barriers to entry are falling and newcomers are already
making inroads, encroaching on traditional lines of business. While the
size of newcomers may look small and banking may still feel safe, you
need a long-term competitive perspective. This is a business revolution,
not just a technological evolution.
Its time to start thinking about ways to evolve your business model
speeding up innovation and behaving like new entrants. If you were a
fintech, how would you behave? What business model would you build
to destroy an incumbent? How would you attack the most profitable
sources of your business? Use a challenger mindset if you want to
survive in the long-term.

across channels and devices, complemented with

Disrupters are a big threat because

an agile strategy and lean IT stack that enables

they are a facilitator of the attention and

customer-centric innovation. A strong digital focus

interests of the customers.They are

enables FIs to make digital a core competence,

helping them to lower their cost-income ratio

more capable of innovation, and better

(less branch, more digital), and maximize their top-

at anticipating customer behavior.

and bottom-line earning potential.

These companies are putting banks in

the position of obsolete operators as far
as customer experience is concerned.
Riccardo Becagli,
head of customer development at Hello bank

/ 15

/ 16

4_ What are the

0

10

15

20

25

30

25% Too many silos

13% Shortage of quality people

biggest roadblocks
when improving
customer
experience?

27% Projects take too much time

14% High costs
7% No support from senior management
10% No or low Customer Culture
4% Others

3% Others

14% Great mobile applications

16% Good range of personalized products

7% Low or no transaction fees

24% Human Interaction

31% A superior digital experience

5% Good branch coverage

5_ W hat are the most

important factors
to maintaining
customer loyalty
and retention for
your bank?

CHAPTER _

03

Customer experience:
The key ingredients
/ 17

For a long time, the banking

industry has been thinking
that we can decide how the
customer will interact with us.
But the plans for human or
digital interaction should be
outside-in the optimum mix
will be pushed by the customer.
The customer will decide.
Max Koszela,
head of channel strategy, Swedbank

Customer loyalty and retention, two of

the most important considerations in
measuring business success, are created
by combining superior digital experiences
and human interaction.
Banks need to improve customer experience, and
digital channels have remained their best opportunity
to achieve this. Many FIs know this, but still find it
difficult to seize the opportunity.
These survey results show that traditional banks
encounter many roadblocks (see fig 4), with lengthy
project timelines and multi-year IT projects cited as
common issues. Having too many silos doesnt help,
nor does the maintenance of legacy applications, and
the high costs of long, difficult projects. These hinder
the journey to digital transformation.
Postponing the digital transformation journey is no longer

4
_ The top 3 roadblocks cited
are long projects, organizational
silos, and high costs.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

5
_ Customers want superior
digital experiences, plus human
interaction. These impact most
on loyalty and retention.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

an option, and FIs know it. 56% of survey respondents

agree that a superior digital experience and human
interaction are major factors for customer retention, and
that these are important areas to focus on when nurturing
customer loyalty and retention rates.(see fig 5)
In order to provide a seamless consumer experience,
banks should bear in mind that customers probably

access their site through one of many different devices,

The time that a customer is willing to wait for the delivery

so squeezing a full-size website into a mobile screen

of goods and services has shortened. Weve been spoiled

isnt a good idea. A visitor on a mobile phone is

by social/mobile technology in terms of our expectations

probably coming to the site for different reasons than

of the service cycle, so people dont necessarily want

someone on a regular web page on their PC, so banks

the cheapest product anymore they want one thats

should adjust the information and give them what

consistent with the expected quality/price ratio.

they need and when they need it. On a mobile device,

/ 18

this is more likely to be an app or widget that uses

Customers are increasingly asking for products and

GPS location services, so that a customer can locate

services tailored to them. Banks should be able to

a nearby ATM. People on the move will also expect

deliver what theyre asking for, because they know

to be able to do their day-to-day chores, such as find

more about their customers than ever before. They now

an account manager online and message them as

expect to be part of the innovation cycle; the ability to

needed, making purchases or transactions quickly

contribute to the development of a product becoming

and conveniently.

part of the experience.

Recommendation:

Start with the customer experience

Your customer comes first, but is this mantra clearly

This is the only way to be able to truly start designing

reflected in every department of your bank? For most

for moments of truth in an iterative approach an

banks, the concept of customer first is the mantra

approach that makes industry disrupters so successful.

most popular in the customer contact center, but

its not the focus when it comes to the rest of your

Banks have a simplistic understanding of their

organization. Too often, we see customer experience

customers and a vast, complex product set. Disrupters

managers focusing on call centers, and the training

are turning this situation on its head, developing a

of branch employees, but whos thinking about the

more complete understanding of their customers

technology side of things?

and dramatically simplifying their product set, thus

delivering a significantly enhanced customer experience

The shift in customer behavior reveals a more personal,

with lower levels of operational risk. To emulate this

relevant, anytime customer journey, and its a journey

approach, begin by understanding your customers

that begins more often on a mobile device. To deliver

needs, and not fixate on products and pricing.

the best mobile experience, you need to do a lot of

work on back-end systems. You need to change the

To make this happen, banks have to go through a

stack. Your focus on network and hardware (and very

paradigm shift. Traditional banks think inside-out; from

little data and UX) should switch, so that your focus is

the existing systems and processes that are mostly

now on UX and data (to deliver a personal experience).

static and outdated. To truly deliver a superior customer

Hardware and network should become afterthoughts.

experience and revolve around the customer, banks have

Chapter _ 03 Customer experience: The key ingredients

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#3

Be customer-centric
This may sound obvious, but a) its not always true for a traditional
incumbent and b) it carries along some key components that are often
under-evaluated. Being customer-centric means that you:
 hange your mindset. You need to build a digital, customer-oriented
C
culture inside the bank. Not just profits, but profits as a result of a
successfully differentiated and long-term sustainable customer strategy.
Marketing isnt just about spending, but should relate back to its original
go-to-market meaning.
Being digital isnt just something trending, but is going to be forever a
core part of the organization. Implementations shouldnt be second level
job execution, but must be smart, agile, smooth and consumer-oriented
and designed. Start thinking about the right organization structure and
interactions, with the right people to digitally lead the change with
customers in mind. Find the right skills.
Reengineer your business to consumer processes. Start with the
end in mind, using overall customer experience you want to achieve as
opposed to starting from a legal and regulatory constraint perspective.
This may sound impossible in an over-regulated industry, but if someone
tells you this is impossible to do, you can always find a way.
In addition, you should inject a yes we can culture. Engage your legal,
compliance and risk managers upfront in the process and product design,
making them work with others on the team towards the solution. They
will become part of the solution instead of a hurdle.
Win customer preference. Dont start with market share or business
objectives. Start with how to get the customer preference you need in
order to achieve your business objectives, and make the objectives
compatible. Competition will only become more intense going forward,
so dont forget your brand image and values.
Trust is key in financial services, and trust is determined first of all by
reputation (brand image and customer experience), which is becoming
more digitized. Improving your reputation and satisfaction scores will bring
you additional clients at lower costs. Its not enough to say that your bank
is solid, or local, or global. You need to work on your brand strategy to
attract customers. This has to be part of your competitive advantage.

/ 19

A paradigm shift: the outside-in approach

Customer
Experience
Platform

Outside-In
Customer Enablement

Inside-Out

Web/Mobile Enablement
Existing
Legacy Systems
/ 20

6
Cater for two innovation heartbeats
Customer Oriented Functions

Customer
Experience
Platform

Existing Systems
(product centric)

Back Office Functions

7
to switch from inside-out thinking to outside-in thinking,

apply a new customer experience platform on top of

which means more from a customers perspective

their existing systems, which can seamlessly combine

instead of a product- or system-based perspective.

ingredients from different systems into an effective,

omni-channel customer journey.

One of the biggest challenges for banks to achieve

this is that their existing applications and IT systems

Another benefit of a separate customer experience

are extremely fragmented and siloed, making them

platform on top of an existing system is the ability

difficult to change, hence hard to create the outside-in

to cater for a faster-moving customer, or digital

experience. To overcome this challenge, FIs need to

heartbeat. The image shows a slow heartbeat for

Chapter _ 03 Customer experience: The key ingredients

existing systems and processes. Most FIs have too slow

By introducing the loosely coupled customer

a heartbeat for keeping up with customer demands and

experience platform on top of existing systems, the

expectations, and this is no surprise.

two heartbeats can live next to each other. The banks

existing IT systems stay in place with their own change

KPIs for those teams responsible for back-end systems

cycle and KPIs, while the customer experience platform

revolve around security, performance, and uptime

delivers a faster change cycle to deliver on the new,

guarantees. KPIs for those teams in front-end systems

customer-focused KPIs.

(the customer side) focus on increasing customer

retention, share of wallet and customer experience in
the form of a Net Promoter Score. Until now, it was
almost impossible to mix the two worlds.
/ 21

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#4

Strive for a faster

innovation planning cycle
Continuously improve by balancing and renewing resources for
long-term well-being. Successful banks in the digital world need to
do the same striving for continuous improvement and renewal.
In order to do so, organizations need to get much faster in the way
they learn, act and react.
Many recent presentations by large banks show their new innovation
labs, teams and work plans. While impressive, few are quickly producing
game-changing innovations. The standard approach to innovation
continues to include internal debates, committees, small pilots, more
committees, and so on.
Using traditional, new product development and approval processes
is a non-starter in the new digital world. The innovation planning cycle
is far too slow for todays high-speed digital banking environment.
Todays big digital players in other industries test and learn as part of
an iterative process. Theyre not afraid of renewal and failure in doing
so. Theyre agile and experiment in real-time with their own customer
base. The decision-making process is much faster and the rollout is
fast very fast!

/ 22

6% Somewhat important

61% Extremely important

8% Important

8_ How important is

it for your bank to

create a seamless
omni-channel
experience?

25% Very important

19% Expanding

9_ W hat is your

4% Not on our radar

30% Deploying

22% Exploring

25% Experimenting

banks status
with regards
to creating
a seamless
omni-channel
experience?

CHAPTER _

04

Omni-channel
and the changing
channel mix
/ 23

The omni-channel
experience is an ongoing

According to the survey, omni-channel is

no longer simply a marketing buzzword.

experience, a continuous

100% of the banks in this survey rate the creation of a

dialogue. There are numerous

seamless omni-channel experience from important to

examples of customers

important.

emailing their complaints

and then going to a branch
to find that their bank has no
record of the issue. Creating
an optimal omni-channel

extremely important, where 61% consider it extremely

However, even though 100% of bankers indicate

that omni-channel is important, only 1 in 5 banks is
expanding its omni-channel strategy. The majority of
banks are still in the exploration, experimentation or
deployment phase of their omni-channel strategy, which
reveals a clear mismatch or shortcoming between

experience removes all of

ambition and actual execution.

these break points.

A reason for this is existing channel delivery

Warren Cammack
head of innovation, Vietnam International Bank

architecture. The back-end is siloed, and the front-end

isnt much different. According to survey results, not
even half of banks manage their digital channels from
one single platform, let alone all of their customer

8
_ A seamless omni-channel
experience is extremely important
for 61% of FIs.

channels from one single platform (which is only

happening for 13% of banks, see fig 10).

Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

9
_ All FIs are working on their
omni-channel strategies, with many
already deploying or expanding.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

To be ready for the future, having a single platform

that manages most (if not all) channels is key, and this
will bring banks on par with tech companies, startups
and neobanks.

/ 24

31% Single platform

for every channel
13% All channels (online,
mobile, ATMs, call
center, employee apps)
are delivered from one
single platform

15% Most (online, mobile,

call center) are delivered
from one single platform

8% Single platform
for every channel

33% Most (online, mobile,

call center) are delivered
from one single platform

0_ H ow are your

banks channels
currently delivered
to the customer?

41% Digital channels

(online & mobile)
are delivered from
one single platform

53% All channels (online,

mobile, ATMs, call
center, employee apps)
are delivered from one
single platform

6% Digital channels
(online & mobile)
are delivered from
one single platform

q_ H ow do you

envision your
banks channel
delivery in 2020?

Chapter _ 04 Omni-channel and the changing channel mix

Recommendation:

Pursue an
omni-channel
delivery model
Even if omni-channel is a buzzword or not, the fact is

One of the key components of a winning omni-channel

that customers are using multiple devices and multiple

presence is communicating a strong, recognizable

channels to accomplish a task over time, and this is

brand across every touchpoint. A banks brand the

especially true when purchasing new products and

promise it intends to deliver should be reflected

services. The customer expects the same experience

visually as well as experientially in the same way via

on every device and on every channel, and they expect

every channel, whether its a branch, ATM or mobile

to be able to perform a seamless handover between

banking app.

devices and channels.

To put it bluntly, a typical consumer isnt able to
For example, with Netflix, we can start watching a

understand the behind-the-scenes integration and the

movie on our way to work, on a tablet. We can pick up

different departments and various analytical tools that

where we left off at any time and on any other device,

vary by channel. They simply expect a certain level of

seamlessly. On the same experience level, why couldnt

we start to fill out an online loan application on a
smartphone, and then later on pick up from where we
left off at home on a desktop computer?
To make this possible, banks have to move the flexible

I have always wanted simplicity

in my projects: everything at

customer experience layer that runs independently

the touch of a button, everything

from the main stack. Banks should have flexible APIs

to be done through mobile. Its

for their main processes and core systems, and an

orchestration layer in between to ensure handover and

all about a one-stop, seamless

session persistency. This is key for creating a seamless

customer experience, no matter

switch between devices.

what or how many channels

used. I want a single platform

0
_ Omni-channel delivery is still
very much siloed, where only digital
is managed from one platform.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

q
_ The future is in having one
single platform that manages
most (if not all) channels.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

that delivers to all channels,

putting me in control. This will
make my life easier.
Alain Boey
SVP/head of transformation,
Bank Simpanan Nasional

/ 25

service, and its a matter of whether youre able to meet

mobile app should enable the customer to intuitively

their expectations or not. So, its up to the bank to create

understand and use internet banking, or the banks

a unified experience regardless of its internal operations.

tablet app. To establish this, banks need to clearly

understand customer expectations, usage habits and

Its not enough to simply create a solid strategy for each

streamline their systems using this information.

channel. Its essential that you embrace a holistic view

of all of them, which is an approach that will create

Research from Google has shown that 98% of

a stronger brand in customers minds essential for

Americans switch between devices in the same day.

improving marketing and service levels.

For the 46% [7] of the population managing their finances

online, this means switching between devices before

/ 26

However, each touchpoint has unique characteristics.

completing a financial activity. Banks need to deliver

This means that banks need to make their services easy

the same feel and structure to make sure that these

to use, regardless of how their customers access them.

interrupted transactions are completed as seamlessly

In an omni-channel approach done right, using a banks

as possible on whatever device is used next.

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#5

Eliminate silos
This is organizationally key for a digital bank. This is not just important
from a legal or risk perspective it must be extended to the whole
organization. Some keys to eliminating silos:
Eliminate business and staff departments. From the most obscure
back office department to state-of-the-art front office deployment,
its important to deploy agile across functional teams. Cross-fertilization
and mutual understanding of the agile concept will help to achieve your
business goals.
 uild objectives and incentives from a multi-channel customer
B
perspective. Find a way to align objectives across channels
and neutralize organizationally driven internal competition. Break
the conflicts.
 ake IT the center of your strategy. Put your COO and CIO at the
M
heart of your business, working alongside finance, marketing, and
so on. Since IT organizations are usually built in silos, break these silos,
making them work agile in teams. Make sure innovation teams are not
logistically miles away from who runs the daily business.

Chapter _ 04 Omni-channel and the changing channel mix

From vertical silos to a horizontal customer journey

Traditional Bank = Legacy Approach

Disrupters = Flexible CX Layer + APIs

UX & Marketing

Banking APIs

orchestration
api

api

api

api

api

Banking Infrastructure

Rails

Most banks will need to switch from a legacy, vertical

net profits by increasing addressable market share

siloed approach to a horizontal approach where no

and enabling the creation of new business models.

silos exist. Instead, there are different layers each

APIs can enable CIOs to reduce costs through faster

taking care of one specific system function. If we start

time to market, lower delivery costs and easier partner

from top to bottom, this will begin with a strong user

integration (eg BBVA substantially reduced internal

experience (UX) and marketing layer that will work on

development costs as part of its Innova Challenge,

any channel and on any device. This is to guarantee

or one large US bank is bringing 15 new apps from a

that no matter how the customer interacts with the

recent hackathon to market within a 6-9 month period,

bank, they get the same brand experience and service.

for a fraction of the time and cost to do so internally.

There are no more silos, so its one unified experience,

MasterCard, Visa and American Express are using

also across channels and devices.

APIs to reduce partner integration complexity).

To handle this omni-channel orchestration, including

Banking APIs allow CIOs to improve internal and

handover, and making sure the right data is available

external user experience by enabling mobility,

at the right time, a strong banking API layer is

creating new ecosystems, crowdsourcing new

necessary to facilitate this. This banking API layer will

ideas, and attracting modern development talent.

act as the bridge between front-end (UX, marketing)

APIs are important in a horizontal delivery model

and the core infrastructure and financial rails.

that enables a horizontal customer journey thats

not burdened by silos.

A strong, open API strategy is essential to deliver on

the omni-channel concept. APIs will be essential for IT
agility in the overall digital transformation roadmap.
According to Gartner [8], APIs enable banks to improve

/ 27

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#6
/ 28

Build an open IT architecture

If you want to build your competitiveness on agile web-scale innovation
and open up your offering to partners and third parties, you need to
completely rethink your IT architecture. Openness is the key word.
You need an open, programmable, agile architecture.
You need an API-centric platform capable of delivering:
Consistent omni-channel experiences.
Dialogue in a plug-and-play, scalable manner with
third-party software solutions.
Hosting for new, outsourced marketplaces.
A new digital CRM that will enable you to interact
and learn in real-time with your customers.
There are already new digital banks set in this way. Fidor Bank is a
good example, as is the way Moven is building its network outside the
US. This will become the norm in the next 5-10 years. There wont be
an option for traditional banking organizations wanting to become
digital banks.

/ 29

/ 30

w_ F rom which

35

Mobile /Tablet 31%

30

Physical channels 28%

Online (Regular web) 24%

channel do you
currently see the
highest increase
in revenue?

25
20
15

10

Others 7%
Agents 5%
Customer Contact Center 5%

5
0

_ F rom which
Mobile /Tablet 50%

50

40

Physical channels
(Branches, ATM, Kiosks) 32%

30

20

Others 10%
Online (Regular web) 6%
Agents 1%
Customer Contact Center 1%

10

channel do you
expect to see
the highest
revenue in 2020?

CHAPTER _

05

Mobiles impact
on online sales
and share of wallet
/ 31

We are seeing the average

user spending 30% more
time on mobile than on
television. From a banking
perspective, were seeing a
drastic increase in the volume
and value of transactions
conducted via mobile.
Warren Cammack,
head of innovation at Vietnam International Bank

We see the shift in custom behavior

determining not only a shift in the channel
mix, but also in revenue generation.
We see the shift in custom behavior determining not
only a shift in the channel mix, but also in revenue
generation. Currently, we see the highest increase in
revenue generation from the mobile channel, followed
by physical channels and online (web).
Yet, in interviews with multiple banks, there are situations
in which the new digital campaigns are actually behind
the revenue spurt, so digital is fueling offline revenue.
However, the survey reveals a unified view for the future:
mobile will be, by far, the biggest revenue generator by
Research that starts on
smartphones leads to
purchases across channels

w
_ Mobile, followed by physical
channels and online, is currently showing
the highest increase in revenue.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

_ Mobile will remain revenue leader,
significantly diminishing the role of online,
customer contact centers and agents.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

37%
32%

then purchased
via computer

then purchased
it offline

2020. Mobile will be solely in the lead, fully diminishing

the role of online, customer contact centers and agents.
Of course, mobile adoption and mobile banking adoption
has grown over the years, mostly driven by mobile selfservice. Now, the future will also provide mobile with an
important part of the revenue mix.
A solid mobile strategy is becoming essential for all banks
and credit unions. Google already predicted this in 2013
when it showed that, usually, product research that
starts on a smartphone leads to purchases via other
/ 32

Mobile will become the

preferred way to interact
with the bank. Its already
the second channel in the
number of interactions
and is the fastest growing
sales channel.
Riccardo Becagli
head of customer development at Hello bank

channels.

Recommendation:

Optimize for
the omni-channel
sale
One of the biggest mistakes most banks make with

However, when building these apps, banks need to

regards to their omni-channel strategy is faking the

stop thinking about them as the smartphone-optimized

experience by focusing on creating identical apps

version of our regular internet banking platform.

and websites for different devices, which is the same

Instead, banks should build an app that helps people

inside-out mistake they made when building for the web.

perform simple transactions fast and easy, and in

If you take the outside-in approach, the end-customers

situations where they are most likely in a hurry or on

perspective on omni-channel, it will become clear that

the road.

its not about the different devices per se, but about the
different behaviors on those different devices.
Step one in a successful omni-channel banking
experience is to make sure that different apps and
websites are optimized for different attitudes:
the quick, the casual, the focused, and the physical.
We can then relate these behaviors to specific devices:
quick to smartphones, casual to tablets, focused to
laptops and desktops, and physical to branches.

Chapter _ 05 Mobiles impact on online sales and share of wallet

Omni-channel banking: preferences per channel and cross-channel journeys

Branch

Sign Contract

Call Center

Casual

Desktop

Loan application
the cross-channel journey

Tablet

Focused

apply for mortgages

buy stocks
set budget goals
pay bills
compare 401ks

Smartphone

Quick

view account balance

view stock prices
payments

Check rates
Select Products
Apply
Get Help

view stock portfolio

compare mortgage rates
see spending patterns

View status

Physical

sign 401ks
sign mortgage agreements

Linking the channels: omni-channel journeys

The second step is to link the different apps together,

situation from the beginning if calling the call center or

making a seamless cross-channel journey. Usually, the

visiting the branch. For banks to become successful

customer uses different channels at different times: its

across multiple channels, they need to build specific

likely they will start one task on one device (eg check

apps according to the customers specific attitudes:

out mortgage rates on their smartphone) and will take

quick, casual, focused, and physical.

the process further on a different device (eg applying

for the mortgage on their laptop), or channel (eg asking

Yet, the real game-changers are linking those apps

for further information via the call center). Its not

into one unified journey, bringing service, design-like

enough to have different apps for different channels.

thinking to the banking sector. Exchanging information,

Apps have to be linked and integrated in one platform

processes and data between different applications

to deliver one seamless, cross-channel journey.

and making the switch between channels becomes

seamless and intuitive. This significantly increases

Lets take the loan application example above. Different

the likelihood of completing an application or sale,

actions can be completed using different channels

and makes it a truly superior omni-channel banking

(called user touchpoints). The (potentially new)

experience.

customer doesnt want to restart the process and have

to fill in their information a second time, nor explain the

/ 33

Meet your customer halfway

In a recent presentation,
ABN AMRO revealed that mobile
users contact their bank
11x more than other customers.

Mobile
Customers
have 11x
more contact

Share mobile 46,5%

/ 34

January February

2012

March

April

May

June

July

August September Oktober November December January February

Share mobile 69%

March

April

May

June

July

August September

2013
More mobile logins

Internet Banking

Double the logins on mobile compared to Internet Banking

Mobile Banking

Finally, market where the customer is. Most banks

Mobile traffic has more than doubled over online

are still investing their complete digital marketing

banking. Clearly, customers are on mobile. Banks

budget in the online channel, while at the same time

should ensure their marketing is also active on mobile.

looking at their analytics software, which shows

The most successful campaigns are those seen

that most traffic is in the mobile channel.

by the right customer at the right time. Mobile

presents huge marketing opportunities, with the
right technology capabilities to be able to provide
the right context to the marketing campaigns.

/ 35

/ 36

_ What does your

18% Reduce costs

bank see as the

biggest benefit of
digitization?

4% Others

40% Customer centric

14% Personalized services

24% New ways of revenue generation

_W
 hich channels

1% Others

are available for

business teams to
manage without
IT support?

30% Social media

7% Mobile Apps

7% Closed Internet
Banking Platform

30% Public
Marketing
Website

25% Special Campaign Pages

CHAPTER _

06

Regaining
control in the era
of digitization
/ 37

Leave it to IT to keep the

lights on. Marketing should
make the lights sexy.
Alain Boey,
head of digital transformation,
National Savings Bank of Malaysia

Becoming a digital bank brings numerous

benefits, and they all start with customercentricity.
A digital-first mindset allows the customer experience
to be developed holistically across channels. Since
customers are accessing content across multiple
devices and from multiple destinations, an integrated
approach has become imperative. This not only
enhances consistency when engaging with customers,
it also reduces overhead in creating content to publish
across multiple channels. It also helps marketers
focus on the relevant media (bought, earned, owned)
and customer experience to improve engagement
(for instance, realizing the significance of integrated
experience design in delivering a seamless multichannel customer experience).
For 24% of survey respondents, another benefit of
digitization is the possibility of exploring new ways to
generate revenue (see fig 17). However, one point is still

_ Benefits include improved

customer-centricity, and new ways
of revenue generation.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

_ Marketing never controls the
primary customer self-service
channels, only promotional channels.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

unclear: we talk a lot about an increase in customer

retention, mobile as the biggest revenue channel, and
the importance of omni-channel, but what is the role of
marketing and IT in this new strategy?
For almost every bank, marketing is officially in control
over the complete customer experience, but its not

/ 38

_W
 hat do you see
as the most
important factors
for successful digital
transformation?
Please choose
your top 3.

4% Open innovation ecosystem

32% Customer experience focus
6% New role for branches

7% Inclusive digital teams

16% Agile IT platform

18% Executive commitment

17% Digital execution

Chapter _ 06 Regaining control in the era of digitization

real, hands-on control. According to the survey results,

philosophy. The key is in employing a business strategy

business teams can only manage the public marketing

that embraces collaboration, but also one that doesnt

site, social media channels and campaign pages. However,

focus purely on either IT or marketing.

the channels with the most traffic, those that take care of
the true customer relationships, are the (closed) internet

Becoming a truly digital bank isnt just about IT or

banking platform and mobile apps. These are essential

systems. Its about the customer. Without a customer

channels, yet the marketing team lacks direct control

experience focus, plus commitment at executive level,

and is dependent on the IT team or external vendor.

and a robust digital execution strategy, the journey will

Vice versa, IT departments can often lack the bigger

be difficult and may fail.

picture when it comes to an essential marketing plan or

/ 39

Recommendation:

Regain control over

your digital strategy
To succeed at customer experience (CX), omni-channel
and mobile, and to beat the disrupters, you have to
regain control and be able to drive a unique experience
with your customer. The focus should be on channel
delivery you need a digital banking platform where you
are in control. It needs to be a platform where business,
marketing and IT teams can work together on the same
innovation strategy. It should also be flexible enough
to mix and match best-of-breed third-party systems for
PFM, Bill Pay, Remote Check Deposit, and so on.
Yet, regaining control isnt the only challenge youre
facing. You need to cater for the two different
heartbeats we discussed earlier in this report: the
fast-moving marketing/customer heartbeat, and the

The Tier 3 and 4 FIs in the US all

look the same when it comes to
online and mobile. Why? Because
the three core banking vendors
that dominate the market are
also in control of the online
experience. As a small bank or
credit union, this means they can
change the logo, maybe color of
the text. For the rest, the bank or
CU will look exactly the same as
all the other banks on the market.
This cannot be the way forward
in the age of digital disruption.

_ Customer experience is crucial
for a successful digital transformation.
Source: Efma and Backbase survey (2015).

Alex Jimenez,
SVP digital and innovation, Rockland Trust

Keeping pace with your customer

Customer Oriented Functions

Using our earlier analogy, here

were demonstrating that you
need to cater for two different
Customer
Experience
Platform

heartbeats: the fast-moving

marketing/customer heartbeat
and the more steady IT heartbeat.

Existing Systems
(Product Centric)

/ 40

Back Office Functions

Development life cycle and

editorial life cycle
The IT team works in 3-6

App life cycle

development cycles a year,

while marketing works
independently and releases

Functionality
development

updates whenever they want.

update

Developer
in control

Business
in control

Functionality
development

Functionality
development

update

update

Content

Content

Content

Content

Content

publish

publish

publish

publish

publish

more steady IT heartbeat. More technically, were

cycles. Introducing the second, the editorial/marketing

talking about two life cycles: a development life cycle

cycle, marketing can now release updates to the digital

and an editor/marketing life cycle.

channels, from online to mobile apps, whenever they

want, and without being dependent on a more strict IT

In the development life cycle, the banks IT team is in

cycle. In this way, the marketing side of business focuses

control and works in strict and planned release cycles

on new content publishing, new functionality and new

that go through a full development, testing and release

marketing campaigns. This division will dramatically

process. Normally, this has a heartbeat of three to six

increase business agility and take pressure away from IT,

releases every year, which isnt enough to keep up with

so they can focus on true innovation in the systems.

fast-moving customer demand and short campaign

Chapter _ 06 Regaining control in the era of digitization

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Digital Bank _ By Roberto Ferrari, general manager at CheBanca!

#7

Embrace cooperation
and competition
Its time for a complete rethink of the banking business model,
IT architecture and systems, since digital banks will mainly serve
as IT companies dealing with customers money in the future.
Banks will need to be much more open and ready culturally and
infrastructurally to share business, clients platforms and solutions
with external partners.
The time where banks could run their business in isolation, with
very little sharing of cross-industry platforms is over. Banking is
under a massive attack from internet giants and legacy-free
fintech startups, creating the need for systematic, cross-industry
alternative digital solutions.
One very good example of how the banking future should be
reshaped is given by the UK-based Paym P2P payment network.
Forced by the Payments Council, it has reached a coverage of nine
out of 10 current accounts, and has processed nearly 44m in
less than a year. As a result, banks and building societies in the
UK have been able to work together to develop a new, fast payment
solution that will make life harder for new entrants.
This is the new way forward: building new, digital, common platforms,
with competition based on customer preferences around branding,
customer experience, value propositions and add-on value propositions.
This is whats happening in the auto industry and will eventually
happen in banking.

/ 41

/ 42

CHAPTER _

07

Conclusion:
Banks need to start
their journey now
/ 43

Weve explored in this report how important it is for

they should be at the core of your business and any

traditional financial institutions to win back share of

outdated, siloed thinking fueled by legacy systems and

market. The key is in beating industry disrupters at

processes should be eradicated.

their own game by becoming one of them, rethinking

your entire digital strategy. To achieve this, your digital

Traditional banks still have a siloed mentality, but

transformation journey needs to start now.

customers dont. You should be able to deliver a

seamless experience thats instant, transparent,

To put a new digital strategy center stage, a mindset

personal, relevant, and ubiquitous. Going digital is a

and vision should be clearly set out (and continuously

fundamental change in how banks and credit unions

communicated) at board level. This needs to be a digital

learn about, interact with, and serve consumers. Banks

transformation strategy that cascades from the top

have to undergo a drastic paradigm shift. Successful

down, circumnavigating silos. Your customers needs

digital transformation begins with an understanding

should be the focus of your digital transformation

of digital consumer behavior, preferences, and choices

across channels and devices, complemented with an
agile strategy and lean IT stack that enables customercentric innovation. You must think from the perspective
of a new customer experience platform vision that will
lay on top of existing systems, enabling you to break

Some banks are not hungry

from the past and truly innovate.

enough to change, and its not

a lack of ideas that prevents
them pushing further, but a lack

Having a strong digital focus will enable you to make

of execution.

this delivered, managed and optimized from a single

Karlis Mikoss
head of digital transformation, National Savings
Bank of Malaysia

digital a core competence, helping you to lower your

cost-income ratio (less branch, more digital) and
maximize top- and bottom-line earning potential. All of
customer experience platform.
The way forward is to start the digital journey today.

Notes
[1] LendingClub Surges in Debut After $870 Million U.S
IPO (Bloomberg)http://bloom.bg/1VaOgK0
[2] Adyen Raises $250M from General Atlantic to
Expand its International Payments Platform
(TechCrunch)http://tcrn.ch/1QAiq2K
[3] Traditional Banks At Risk Due to Digital Disruption
(The Financial Brand)http://bit.ly/1VcmfMW
[4] Global Consumer Banking Survey 2014,
Winning through customer experience (EY)
/ 44

http://bit.ly/1PwBL4N
[5] Disrupting Banking: The FinTech Startups
That Are Unbundling Wells Fargo, Citi and Bank of
America (CB Insights)http://bit.ly/1KBqzPL
[6] Lendingclub Moves Up in Market Cap Rank,
Passing Pepco Holdings (Forbes)
http://onforb.es/1KDBCcb
[7] The new multi-screen world (Google)
http://bit.ly/1KSYUyh
[8] The Business Value of Banking APIs by
Kristin R Moyer (Gartner)http://gtnr.it/1gQOEum

About Backbase

About Efma

Backbase is a software company. We are on a mission

As a global not-for-profit organization, Efma brings

to help financial institutions create, manage, and

together more than 3,300 retail financial services

optimize secure omni-channel customer interactions.

companies from more than 130 countries. With a

membership base of almost a third of all large retail

We have created the worlds leading lean customer

banks worldwide, Efma has proven to be a valuable

experience platform, Backbase CXP. It has been

resource for the global industry, offering members

designed to help you organize, create, and manage

exclusive access to a multitude of resources, data-

deeply relevant customer experiences across all

bases, studies, articles, news feeds and publications.

channels, on any device, to delight your customers

Efma also provides numerous networking opportunities

and deliver measurable business results. We believe

through working groups, online communities, and

that customer experience management is essential

international meetings. For more information, visit

for financial institutions to stand out from the

www.efma.com
/ 45

crowd, stay relevant to their customers, and grow

their business.
Next to Backbase CXP, weve created Backbase DBP,
our digital banking solution, optimized for retail
banking, commercial banking and wealth management
scenarios. Backbase DBP includes the omni-channel
and customer experience power provided by Backbase
CXP, enriched with out-of-the-box Digital Banking
Apps (from account opening, to transactions, money
movement, and so on) and our Digital Banking Services,
making it possible to use Backbase DBP as a digital
banking solution on top of any core or back-end system.
Global financials such as ABN AMRO Bank,
Al Rajhi Bank, CheBanca!, Fidelity, Goldman Sachs,
Hapoalim, Hiscox, Keybank, Legal & General,
Nationwide, OTP Bank, PostFinance, PZU, Sberbank,
Swiss Re, and SwissCard have all improved their
online customer interactions and maximized online
customer experience, retention and conversion,
by leveraging Backbase technology.
Backbase was founded in 2003 and is privately
funded with operations in New York, Atlanta,
Amsterdam, and London. For more information,
visit www.backbase.com

For more information, permission to reprint or

translate this work, and all other correspondence,
please email: [email protected]
2015, Backbase B.V. All rights reserved.

Backbase is named a leader in the

Forrester Wave for omni-channel digital banking

/ 46

Market presence

Backbase was among a group of select vendors

Backbase offers broad business capabilities,

that Forrester invited to participate in the report.

rich support of customer experience, and

The Backbase Digital Banking Platform is listed

as leader and received the highest score in the

very solid technology and architecture.

Current Offering category. Being named a leader

With Backbase being a pure-play vendor,

in the Forrester Wave gives the market yet another

it is not a surprise that its commitment to

validation of Backbase being at the forefront of digital

innovation. We are very happy with this recognition
and are energized to help our customers accelerate
their digital transformation. Our software is used

its omnichannel banking solution is high.

Forrester Wave,

Omni-Channel Digital Banking Solutions, September 2015.

by leading banks around the world and we are 100%

committed to enabling them to create superior digital
customer experiences, anytime, anyplace, any device.

Why is Backbase a leader in omni-channel digital banking?

Omni-channel: putting your end-customers first
1

Todays customers expect seamless customer

Ready to go: jumpstart your digital transformation

3

Backbase has developed out-of-the-box digital

journeys any time, any place, and on any device.

banking solutions optimized for retail banking,

The Backbase Digital Banking Platform (DBP)

commercial banking, wealth management and

helps you to modernize and orchestrate all of your

insurance-specific scenarios. Kickstart your project

customer touchpoints, transforming multiple siloed

and dramatically decrease your time-to-market by

banking channels and legacy applications into a

leveraging industry best practices and ready-to-go

consistent brand experience thats easy to use and

implementation accelerators.

always available.
Cost-efficient: reuse your core banking systems
2

With Backbase, theres no need to replace or rebuild

Growth: control your digital strategy

4

Backbase puts you in control of your digital

strategy, enabling you to create, manage, and

your core systems from scratch. Backbase enables

optimize the end-to-end customer experience

you to repurpose them by incorporating their

across every device. We have invested in many

content, data, and functionality into a new digital

years of R&D to give you exactly the right editing

customer experience layer. This layer is optimized

and digital marketing tools you need to take full

for easy integration with your existing business

control of optimizing the customer experience,

applications, and the delivery of a unified and

resulting in more sales conversions, and greater

seamless customer experience across any device.

customer satisfaction.

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