KPMG Report: Banking on Consumer Platforms

Banking on Consumer Platforms

Banks are looking to technology and partnerships to improve services and products. Meanwhile, some of the big consumer platforms are looking to collaborate with the banking sector. If banks are serious about digitising their offering, it requires moving beyond the confines of banking models and traditional infrastructures to best service today’s customers.

KPMG’s article ‘Banking on Consumer Platforms’ explores the opportunities for banks to collaborate with big tech players like Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon to provide solutions that customers can experience real value in.

Increasing distribution

Global tech companies have the obvious advantage that millions of consumers are already using their platforms. Banks have the advantage of being trusted with finance, have access to capital and are already regulated. The report notes, “Banks are increasingly recognising that they are expecting customers to find them…when what customers really want is for banks to be wherever they are.”

By working with consumer platforms, banking services will be more ubiquitous and can provide a more efficient service. The other key driver for the collaboration is data. Consumer platforms hold far more information about customers than banks do. The data is already digitised, ready to analyse and can instantly be put to good use for additional revenue opportunities.

Co-operation

Successful partnerships already exist, with Goldman Sachs working with Apple, and some traditional banks using Facebook to harvest data. Google is working with the banks to provide entirely new product and channel solutions to engage prospective customers.

Forging a partnership sooner rather than later is likely to pave the way to a strong future. KPMG calls out that for partnerships to be successful, banks need to be looking at changes that are organisational, cultural and strategic. It calls out the practical key areas to focus on;

• Understand key business drivers remain laser-focused on the problem and solution.
• Drive organisational agility by looking at efficiency, infrastructure, measures and the way that projects are managed as a constant exercise.
• Develop the right skills and capabilities for success by considering the talent within the organisation and employing the right skills to support the vision.
• Apply bold leadership which will require both the guts to be able to take risks as well as the humility to fail. Conviction in the project is critical to take employees on the journey and take difficult decisions along the way, weighing up risk and regulations against a bolder future vision for the company.  

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You can read the full KPMG report here.