In recent years, the financial services sector has faced many disruptions, from emerging FinTechs to the pandemic and increased regulations. In order to stay competitive, banks would need to engage strategies that adapt to external and internal pressures to improve their services and organizational efficiency. We’ll be honest, it’s not the easiest walk in the park. If you’re looking to attract new customers and simplify your banking processes, we’ve some factors you should consider before embarking on your digital transformation journey.

Digital Wealth Management Tools

As mobile banking is increasingly preferred across customer segments, banks need to consider innovative and intelligent ways to better connect with and serve their customers. To streamline and modernize your banking infrastructure and create better workflows, we’d suggest investing in data management tools that reinforce transparency, efficiency and reporting capabilities. At the same time, these tools should encourage seamless and productive knowledge transfer. Information can then be made readily available and manageable across advisors as well as in communication channels with their end-users.

It’s important to note that data management solutions should be able to scale rapidly and cost effectively while assisting advisors to provide more consistent advice. Solutions should also incorporate Big Data analytics capabilities to intelligently interrogate investment and client data.

Intended User Profile

Perhaps the most essential aspect of digital transformation is the targeted end user. The customer engagement strategy would differ depending on the type of services the intended user values, whether it’s retail investors or financial advisors and wealth managers.

For a start, define a clear goal and, specifically, who the solution would be catered to. For retail investors, convenient and intuitive user journeys are a must. Investors would also expect personalized features that are simplified and can accomplish basic banking tasks effortlessly. While advisors and managers also require applications that are easy to operate, real-time analytics and organized data presentation would be a plus. Whether it’s D2C or B2B, digital advisory platforms would have to meet the expectations of increasingly tech-savvy investors and be able to support a full range of clients for advisors. 

Product Offerings

With a multitude of customer needs across segments, it’s crucial that your business provides the most suitable products and customer journeys.

A few things to consider:

• Are your advisory services focused on financial planning or portfolio management?
• The category of end clients, e.g. mass retail investors or HNWI.
• Are your products and services subjected to a level of specialization and personalization? E.g. ETFs, mortgages, money market accounts, digital goal setting options, progress trackers, active recommendations.

It’s important to note that what you offer is personalized based on customer needs and preferences in order to stand out with a superior experience. If you’re looking to bundle services, data gathering and analytics is essential to deliver a compelling and integrated experience that provides seamless funding, investment, payments and money-market capabilities.

Choosing a Custodian Partner

Choosing a custodian is a decision that dictates your control over your business as well as how you interact with clients. There are several aspects to consider before choosing a partner so that your business needs are met adequately, and to avoid switching your primary custodian later on. Firstly, consider the integration capabilities of your custodian choice and whether their core system fits your infrastructure. Prioritize a custodian that’s committed to innovation, enabling you to customize your software as well as scale operations when necessary. Take into account your asset mix and ensure that your custody relationship is able to evolve with your clients’ accounts. Access the reporting and accounting capabilities of a custodian and ensure that they are able to provide high-value performances that support you and your customers’ demands.

Building a Digital Wealth Platform

The path to building a wealth management platform depends on the level of customization as well as resources and experience available. Firms with in-house tech teams can easily source and build their robo platform on-site, protecting privileged access to consumer data. If not, there are third-party designers and developers to outsource to while maintaining intimate control of the customization process. On the other hand, consulting firms that manage contractors and solutions providers are a convenient option for firms that lack industry knowledge and experience. Turnkey solutions providers, much like Bambu, are a popular choice if you need an end-to-end solution that can be easily implemented into your current applications within short timeframes. 

In this era, more financial services providers have turned to digital advisory services than not. If you’re still thinking about whether you should jump on the digital wave, the time is now. As competition grows among FinTech and WealthTech firms that provide specialized and secure SaaS solutions, banks might find building smart partnerships with technology providers to be advantageous, cost effective and efficient.

Factors listed are a guide to get started on digitalizing your services but beyond this, it’s a journey that requires ongoing shifts and mindsets.

Looking to develop and deploy intelligent robo investing solutions? Reach out to our sales team on solutions such as our Wealth Management APIs and Bambu Build, or schedule a demo with us to see what we have to offer.