How IT technologies are changing banks in 2022

The more technologically advanced the banking industry, the safer and more convenient it is for customers today. We talk about fintech trends in the face of new challenges, about what strategies banks are now choosing

• The Russian banking system was able to survive several shocks at once in 2022 alone, but turned out to be technically prepared for them. By 2019, our country was already leading in terms of digitalization and online services in the banking industry. An example is the transfer of money over the phone. This is something that was invented and implemented in our country and without which it is already difficult to imagine your life. From the point of view of customer services, we approached the pandemic “pumped”.
• The pandemic has brought new skills. For example, older people who used to go to bank offices and never used apps were forced to sort out online services in isolation. Now it has become much more convenient for customers of different generations to use banking services, and this improves their quality of life. About 60% of customers continue to use online services after the pandemic. Offices and consultants will remain, but everything routine will be completely digitized in the coming years.
• Today, medium-sized companies can survive and even increase the share of business only in their expert niche. “Absolut Bank” has chosen its strategy – it has identified several niches where it acts as an expert and technology leader. Medium-sized companies find it easier and faster to test hypotheses. Large banks are long and costly processes.

• Medium-sized banks do not create their own ecosystems, like giant banks and large IT companies, but choose partnerships. This is precisely what became their new competitive advantage, since talented specialists from young IT startups look at the banking product with completely different eyes. They are able to give a lot of insights, see and show the client experience through the eyes of not a bank employee, but the client himself.
• time-to-market before the events of February 2022 was the main criterion for bringing banking services to market. Banks competed with each other in the speed of launch, but when we interviewed customers, it turned out that the priorities had shifted. Speed ​​is still important, but as it turns out, today the main thing is cybersecurity, storage of data that you have entrusted to your bank.
• The second important criterion is “uberization”. Be with the client 24/7, give him the opportunity to satisfy his request quickly and in one click, like in a taxi application. A lot of technological work is to find out whether and when exactly the service is needed by the client.
• Regulator stood up on the path of import substitution in the field of cybersecurity. solutions in this area can replace 90% of the services of foreign vendors. The remaining 10% will also be implemented soon, as the resources of the Ministry of Digital Development are directed to this area.
• Ecosystems are the future. The main principle of ecosystems is win-win: it is necessary for everyone to be profitable in it. In addition, in our country should appear legislative regulation of ecosystemsotherwise it will lead to chaos.
• The banking industry has come to the conclusion that its main value is a technological product, so it is important to learn communicate with IT specialists people with a systematic mind, a new approach to work.

• The main theme of new projects – cybersecurity, import substitution of products that provided it, and the creation of standards for new Russian solutions that replace international application programs. The Fintech Association should lead this direction together with the Ministry of Digital Development, since these will be standards not only for the financial industry, but also for the digital one.
• Human digital profile comes to the fore. It allows you to quickly get information about a person and decide what, for example, feasible amount can be approved for his loan. It is important to use the API so that there is a simple integration, switching from one partner to another, and that the connection is carried out in one click.
• CEOs of companies must learn to rebuild their decisions very quickly, discarding unnecessary ones in the moment. Daily reconciliation of decisions made and quick restructuring is now the most important skill. Not even stress resistance, but the courage to throw away everything unnecessary and start doing what is really important now.