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Financial Institutions & Digital Capabilities

Financial Institutions have moved swiftly to enable more digital functionality. This effort has taken on many different paths. For some, the move has been to offer a combination of the following: BaaS, Open Banking, digital loan applications, a stand-alone digital bank, faster payments, access to cryptocurrencies, P2P functionality, electronic signatures, PFM, online and mobile app B2B capabilities. All this has been occurring, while at the same time, Big Tech, FinTech, and DeFi, have been launching new capabilities that target specific needs of consumers and businesses. Many traditional financial institutions have also developed partnerships and strategic alliances with Big Tech and FinTech firms or have invested in them directly.

 

 

COVID is Driving A Shift In Behavior

The COVID crisis further amplified the need for consumers and businesses to conduct more of their financial lives online and through mobile apps. In many ways, the changes in our industry were a direct result of a shift in consumer and business preferences that have been a long time coming; a need to move money faster and with a delightfully easy experience. While consumers’ lives and business operations have not yet returned to “normal,” we have learned how to adapt to life with a deadly virus around us. This includes being more comfortable with conducting more of our financial lives virtually rather than in person.

What comes next?

From IFM’s view, we see changes in consumer and business behavior daily. As a result of more digital functionality, the amount of data has grown exponentially. Some FI’s have seen their digital transaction volumes grow more than 2x-3x faster than previous years. IFM works with many of the largest banks in the U.S. and smaller FI’s that have a critical role in their communities, and all are impacted by changes in consumer and business behavior.

The movement of money has never been faster and will only become faster still. To be competitive, FI’s must be at the top of their game when utilizing data insights and predicting future customer behavior. IFM has an industry-leading customer intelligence solution to help your FI communicate more efficiently, with direct personalized content, and keep you and your enterprise informed of future behavioral changes.

Contact us today to take advantage of our free, no-obligation evaluation offer to get a first-hand view of your consumer and business customers. To learn more, visit us on our website at www.infimark.com.

 

 

 

 

Like other industries in this new millennium, the financial services industry has been rapidly transformed by new technology.  With the rise of digital money, real-time money movement, and increased competition within the industry, this change is growing at an even faster pace.  But let’s face it, this industry has been one of the slowest to change compared to the Music/Movie Industry, Travel/Transportation, Communications, Engineering/IT/Cyber Security, and Shopping. 

 

How an institution prioritizes the utilization of data and information technology will largely dictate its future success.

 

One reason has been an inability for many traditional FI’s to transform their culture to prioritize data and information technology.  How an institution prioritizes the utilization of data and information technology will largely dictate its future success.  A recent article by Industry advisor Jim Marous, “How to Build a Data Culture that Supports Digital Banking Transformation” (thefinancialbrand.com), mentions the importance of implementing a data-centric strategy across the enterprise.  The article states that “Customer insight platforms and the process of information management can expand to customer service, product development, compliance, privacy governance and other key areas of the organization that need a complete and real-time view of the customer.”  

 

 

Insight Financial Marketing (IFM) recognizes the importance of customer insights and has supported financial institutions across the country for nearly twenty years.  IFM clients have implemented our customer intelligence service into their enterprise-wide data strategy and have become leaders in the industry.  IFM’s advanced technology provides new capabilities related to detecting changes in customer behavior and the ability to predict customer behavior.  

To learn more about how IFM has helped FI’s transform data to be more easily leveraged throughout an enterprise and to enable your FI to compete more effectively in the future, contact Rob Reale, Associate Partner and National Sales Manager, at rreale@infimark.com or visit our website, www.infimark.com.    

 

Help Your Customers Build Generational Wealth and Grow Opportunities for the Future

Interest rates continue to remain at record lows, and the recent employment numbers are showing improvement as we continue to recover from the COVID crisis.  Now that the economy is recovering, there are opportunities for financial institutions to help their customers get back on track for planning and preparing for the future.  Two of those areas include providing guidance and assistance with the planning and saving necessary to buy a home and providing the guidance, support, and services that will enable them to save for retirement.  

An article published by the US Census Bureau mentions that the most significant contributors to household wealth are home equity and retirement accounts, which accounted for 62.9% of households’ net worth.  Providing guidance and assistance in these two critical areas will help your customers build generational wealth and provide opportunities for themselves and their families in the future. 

 

 

Insight Financial Marketing® (IFM®) has an industry-leading solution that provides deep insight into customer behavior and financial activity.  Using IFM’s advanced data analytics, your financial institution can identify key characteristics about your customers in near real-time and identify the segments likely to be more receptive to specific messaging in these critical areas.  

IFM offers event-based alerts and marketing campaign files that allow you to message your customers at the right time so you can provide them with the guidance and support they need to build wealth via homeownership, investing, and saving for retirement.  

To learn more about IFM’s services, you can visit our website or communicate with me directly via email or voice at rreale@infimark.com and 703-856-4060.

 

 

ACH Volume Soars At Record Pace

Wow!! Have you seen the new information that the National Automated Clearing House Association (NACHA) has posted about ACH transaction volume during the second quarter of 2021?  Volume soared at a record pace.

According to the post, the quarterly volume of 7.3 billion was an increase of 9.9% from the same period in 2020. The value of those payments was $18.4 trillion, reflecting a nearly 25% increase from a year earlier. Additionally, during the first quarter, a “new record was set in February when ACH volume averaged more than 118 million payments per day, the ACH Network’s highest daily average for a month. The second was in March, when ACH volume hit 2.7 billion payments, the largest monthly volume in ACH Network history. This included approximately 110 million economic impact payments by Direct Deposit from the federal government.”

 

In March, ACH volume hit 2.7 billion payments, the largest monthly volume in ACH Network history.

 

Clearly, these numbers show that the COVID pandemic has accelerated a change in behavior.

amongst consumers and businesses to adopt electronic payments and digital money movement.  Drilling down further into the Q2 numbers, we see that P2P transactions increased by 24.2% from the year-ago quarter, B2B activity increased by 28.7% and internet transactions increased by 14.3%. 

These volume numbers indicate that the rapid growth of transactions within the ACH network has not only continued to grow but are now growing at a record pace.

Question:

Why are ACH transaction volumes increasing so quickly and how will financial institutions adapt to this change in behavior from a customer intelligence perspective?

Answers: 

More and more consumers are choosing to conduct their lives online and in the mobile space. This includes entertainment, travel, paying bills, sending money to family, friends or businesses, shopping, buying digital currency, being paid by Direct Deposit, and investing. Businesses are also moving away from paper checks and adopting digital payments. From a financial institution perspective, firms will be challenged as their customers will be expecting that when moments that matter occur, their financial institution will be there for them, in near real-time with the right guidance and the financial products and services that meet their needs.

Customer Expectations Are Changing To Near Real-Time

Customers will be expecting that when moments that matter occur, their financial institution will be there for them with the proper guidance, financial products, and financial services that meet their needs.

Insight Financial Marketing has an industry-leading solution that will enable your financial institution to better understand consumer and business behavior in near real-time.  We have a proprietary analytical approach that identifies pattern changes, life events, and lifestyle changes that will help your FI to deepen relationships with your consumer and business customers. To find out how IFM can help your team better engage with your customers, visit us at our website, Infimark.com, or contact Rob Reale at rreale@infimark.com.