5 Digital Transformation Examples in Banking You Should Know

The global market of digital banking is growing exponentially, as the domain is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.23% between 2024 and 2032. The key factors behind the growing popularity of this domain include enhanced customer services, improved security, and advanced analytics. With all such capabilities, banks can just take their critical services one step further, gaining a competitive edge and securing a reliable reputation in the industry.

In this article, we will explore this topic in more detail to identify five excellent examples of digital banking transformation in action.

The best way to understand the emerging promises of digital transformation in the banking sector is to analyze the opinions of global banking leaders. In particular, that’s what the CEO of a large U.S. bank with which we had an opportunity to cooperate speaks of this topic:

“Digital transformation in the banking domain means a comprehensive business shift. Here it goes, not only about adopting new technologies but also about changing the approach of the entire company. This involves a mindset shift, automation at all levels, and a growing level of tech literacy across the company. Adopting one tool that automates one or several workflows is not a digital transformation. Creating a corporate culture that drives innovation and is dedicated to continuous improvement through technology is.”

Surely, to be so attractive to banking institutions, digital transformation has to bring them tangible benefits. Here’s what one of the senior executives from the same U.S. bank says on this topic:

“Digital transformation in banking is a certain way to boost your business efficiency in multiple ways. Here it goes about improving the quality of service and your bank’s reputation. Users will always favor a bank that can handle a transaction within minutes or even seconds instead of old-fashioned 1-3 business days. In addition, this shift takes security to the next level. It is the only way to respond to growing cyberthreats that can make both banks and their clients lose their funds.”

These quotes align with a general vision of the banking industry’s leaders. Digital transformation is a necessary step for staying competitive and flexible enough to face the emerging challenges of the global banking industry.

To illustrate the many benefits of digitization in the finance sector, let’s explore the most notable digital transformation examples in banking.

Mobile banking apps and emerging super-apps are the most popular examples of digital transformation in banking. They offer a variety of standard features, such as account management and payments. Meanwhile, they also integrate services for investment and insurance management and company-specific features. The key purpose of such solutions is to enhance user experience and allow bank clients to access its services conveniently with a smartphone.

For an example of such a solution, check out our case study on the cooperation with a B2B banking platform from the UK. We helped this customer enhance their software productivity and security by implementing advanced CI/CD pipelines and a sophisticated security monitoring system.

Financial institutions often have to deal with a great variety of customer requests. This creates a significant load on client support teams. That’s when AI-powered virtual assistants and chatbots come into action. These solutions can handle basic customer requests, unloading human support agents, and allowing them to focus on more complex and urgent requests. Often built on top of a curated company knowledge base, such solutions shine when it comes to providing informative responses and adapting to changing conditions of the conversations.

One of the best examples of global banks that use AI for customer support is the Bank of America. The company uses Erica, a smart virtual assistant that can handle human-like conversations with customers, providing responses to their questions and queries. Launched in 2018, Erica is a mature virtual assistant powered with an extensive knowledge base and using advanced reasoning to keep the bank’s clients satisfied. 

It is important to note that in addition to ensuring 24/7 customer support coverage, AI can be applied in many other areas of digital banking. In particular, many financial institutions actively implement AI security services.

Nowadays, almost all platforms are cloud-based because cloud platforms provide excellent flexibility and are typically more cost-efficient than on-premises deployments. Digital banks migrate from legacy core systems to the cloud or even migrate between different cloud platforms to find the most resilient and cost-effective solution. If implemented properly, cloud migration allows them to get a flexible and innovative architecture enriched with services that cover various needs, from security monitoring to continuous deployment.

Don’t hesitate to ask us if you need cloud migration advisory services!

The market is overwhelmed with digital banks, each providing similar offerings to potential clients. To stand out from the competition, digital banking platforms need to provide personalized offerings, advice, and experience. That’s why analytics is so important for such companies. Banks go beyond traditional usage of tools like Power BI. Instead, they launch their custom analytical platforms or integrate AI-powered business intelligence algorithms into their platforms. An excellent example of a bank that does this the right way is the South African Capitec bank. The company has adopted Copilot for Power BI among other AI tools (Azure OpenAI, Microsoft 365 Copilot, etc.) to achieve efficient reporting, both internal and external.

Many notable digital transformation examples in banking involve using blockchain and digital payments. These concepts have become buzzwords after the rise of the global cryptocurrency market. However, they still remain relevant. Blockchain stands for excellent speed and security of transactions globally. Other important benefits of this approach are that blockchain transactions are cost-efficient and transparent. The latter is especially vital when it comes to companies that work under strict compliance rules and regulations. Some examples include JP Morgan, UBS, and China Construction Bank.

The world’s leading companies are ready to share their digital transformation examples in banking. For instance, J.P. Morgan has displayed the value of blockchain in interbank settlements. The company has introduced its JPM Coin. It is a blockchain-based digital token used for instant settlement of institutional money transfers. This innovation sets a new standard for transaction speed in the digital finance sector.

When it comes to notable examples of highly efficient cloud infrastructures in banking, one can mention BBVA. The company has modernized its core systems to ensure excellent agility and continuous modernization of its infrastructure.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia can display an excellent example of using AI and ML for enhancing personalization. The organization has developed advanced analytical scripts that allow it to offer the customers personalized insights and offerings.

Finally, there are significant examples of digital-first institutions that embed digital culture into every aspect of the organization. For instance, DBS Bank from Singapore manages to reach unmatched productivity levels by using AI across all areas of its operations. Here it goes about security, infrastructure management, employee workflow management, customer support, financial forecasting, and many more.

While all these examples are quite different, they all share a common point. These success stories show how innovation and digital technologies help leading banks adapt to the dynamically changing finance sector.

Notable examples of digital transformation in banking inspire businesses globally and highlight the value of embracing new technologies. By using advanced solutions, companies across industries can enhance customer experience, boost support teams, enhance cost-effectiveness, ensure greater personalization, and boost the speed and security of digital payments.

The key point here is to do the technical side properly. A company with solid experience in implementing advanced technologies and providing DevOps development services is ready to help.

AppRecode is ready to help you. We have a significant example of operations in the finance sector. Our specialists can work with organizations of different sizes and with different approaches. Whether you need to ensure excellent security, embrace the benefits of the cloud, or leverage advanced analytics, we are ready to help. You may check out our Clutch page for customer testimonials and make sure that we always deliver excellent service quality.

Contact us if you are inspired by the best examples of digital transformation in banking and want to launch your own success story.