The banks of the future

Banks that don't have customers enamored with their service run the risk of being overtaken by innovative, digital, agile companies that attract their clients, especially millennials.

It's impressive what we have in a smartphone these days: a small device that fits in our pocket, giving us access to technology that in the 80s cost over a million dollars (Bold, Diamandis). Most interestingly, smartphones were scarce technology ten years ago and today they are devices owned by 57% of the population in Mexico. These devices, which we check on average 150 times a day, have become a fundamental part of our lives and the way we communicate, entertain, inform, and work. A device where the application that captures our attention is the one with the best user experience.

Although nowadays we can make our lives much simpler thanks to access to mobile services, there are still services like banking in Mexico that have the lowest quality perception ranking in our country (Leventer Group). It's no secret that if you have a problem with your bank, you'll have to wait on a long phone call or go to a branch and wait to be attended to. Some people have gotten used to this and see it as normal, however, millennials (young people born between 1984 and 1999) have been surrounded by technology since childhood, and it's something that comes naturally to us, so waiting generates significant friction with banks.

Talking with Ángel Sahagún, founder of albo, an app that replaces your bank and has opened 4,000 new accounts in its first three months, he tells us: "The idea arose after several years working in the banking technology industry, seeing how banks continue to use traditional processes, full of bureaucracy and complexity for simple tasks. Therefore, we believe it's time for better banking service. Albo is an app that replaces your bank, with no branches, and helps you use your money better. All from your smartphone."

"Mobile banking is growing exponentially, however, most banks have structures that make them slow and bureaucratic in making quick decisions about their digital strategy. This is where being a startup is a great advantage as we can make rapid decisions focused on our customers, not on corporate bosses." User experience will undoubtedly have to be a priority among banks that want to dominate the market. However, there are other exponential technologies that are also changing the financial sector, such as peer-to-peer lending, Blockchain, Big Data, and Machine Learning, all focused on improving the user experience. Banks that don't have customers enamored with their service run the risk of being overtaken by innovative, digital, agile companies that attract their clients, especially millennials.