Industry Insights: 2018—Leaping Forward, or Playing Catch-Up?

It’s January, and the banking industry voices are singing the song of 2018. A fine song it is, full of breakneck technology development and the threat of being overtaken by competitive forces. Here are a few of the looks ahead that we think merit your time.

Analytics, AI and Mobile remain the big tech talking points. CMS Wire sees these buzzwords not only as new trends, but as resurging ones.

We at Alogent think the other two of top three trends predicted by Finanser.com—both involving the customer experience—may be of even more immediate and practical value. Jim Marous, in the third article, reinforces this view.

Finally, speaking of mobile banking and behavior, the American Banker article below looks to consumer behavior to overcome the limitations to growth.

The Fintech Outlook for 2018. thefinanser.com. This article presents data in two key categories: top trends for 2018, and top strategic priorities. Out of the top six (three on each list), three relate to customer experience: enhancing the customer journey, delivering multi-channel integration, and removing friction.

Mobile, AI and IoT: Old Buzzwords are New Again in 2018. CMS Wire. Another clear recommendation to boost mobile-first in 2018, but only if you understand that mobile is personal, and must be targeted to consumer preferences.

The biggest barrier to mobile banking growth? Fear. American Banker. This article sees mobile banking growth slowing far short of universal adoption, and argues that new growth will go to institutions who deal with “Fear of technology, fear of banks, fear of loss of privacy, fear of complexity and even fear of revealing one’s technological ignorance.”

Digital Banking Customers Demand Hyper Personalization. The Financial Brand. In a world where a third of relationships end because of depersonalization, this article clearly lays out the case for services that are hyper relevant, even though they are delivered via digital channels.