THE FINAL WORD INDUSTRY
In what ways has the COVID-19 pandemic irrevocably changed the private banking industry and your own bank's approach to operations and service?
Tee Fong Seng, Pictet Wealth Management Asia The financial industry has had to rapidly evolve and adapt under the new circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. This posed challenges as well as opportunities for the banking sector. Challenges, as most industries, if not all, have seen a compression of revenues and increase in costs, which is likely to lead to more consolidation. The pandemic has also brought opportunities for the sector, accelerating the pace of digital transformation among private banks — to mention just one. As far as Pictet is concerned, we have always been focused on organic growth, so we were not affected by this wave of consolidation. We have always believed in acquiring one client at a time, hiring one staff member at a time, a strategy that has been working very well for us. At the same time, we have had to develop new ways of communicating with clients, through webinars or video calls, while most of our staff was working from home. We believe this digital transformation will pave the future for an industry that was, until not too long ago, relying almost entirely on face-to-face interactions. François Monnet, Credit Suisse Private Banking Asia Pacific COVID-19 has without a doubt accelerated technology adoption and has spurred a survival-of-the-fittest landscape. Companies that are able to adapt, innovate and evolve their business model to capitalise on opportunities in the digital world will thrive. At Credit Suisse, our continuous innovation journey in the last few years has placed us in good stead to be the private bank that is at the forefront of technological innovation. As digitalisation remains a key strategic long-term driver and enabler of sustainable business growth, we have continued investing in and strengthening our digital capabilities. In 2020, we rapidly exploited our innovative and pioneering digital private banking platform and channels since the start of the pandemic to drive digital engagement with clients on a larger and broader scale. There was an almost instantaneous adjustment of our service delivery model where our business traffic on Credit Suisse Chat and our Digital Private Banking platforms surged and an exceptionally high volume of trades was executed. We continue to communicate via innovative channels and approaches, such as webinars, calls, podcasts and videos to update clients on key investment themes. Through these channels, we provided thought leadership and guidance to our clients, and we expect technology and digitalisation to only become more prevalent as we move forward. For us, ensuring that our digital capabilities are at the leading edge is key to making Credit Suisse fit for the future.
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Vincent Chui, Morgan Stanley Bank Asia Limited The pandemic has unwittingly acted as a catalyst for investors, banks and regulators to accept and embrace technology as a legitimate communication and governance tool. It has compelled investors and RMs to get comfortable with virtual meetings rather than physical ones. It has also forced individual banks to have a reality check of their remote technology competence and business continuity planning. The pandemic may well prove to be the most significant enabler of fintech and regtech in the financial services industry. Cedric Lizin, Standard Chartered Bank The private banking industry as we know it, characterised by high-touch and personal relationships, has adapted in 2020 with the pandemic. While the industry was gradually embracing digital, the pace greatly accelerated in 2020. We witnessed an uptick in digital adoption rate. New client sign-ups to our SC Private Banking app increased over 30% in 2020 and the average time spent on the app increased too. Many initiatives already in the works have been fast-tracked. These were primarily initiatives that improve our engagement with clients, the productivity of our bankers, and the efficiency of internal processes. For instance, we accelerated the digitalisation of our account opening process and are now using video-calls to verify identity documents, and e-signatures for account opening documents instead of wet signatures on hard copies. We rolled out new features in our mobile app, such as more personalised content or dynamic portfolio performance views. We launched a video-based roleplay training programme for RMs to practise and perfect their virtual client communications skills through a series of scenarios. Next to these client-facing initiatives, we digitalised a series of internal processes, such as moving to e-instructions and removing all paper exchanges between departments. This has greatly improved the turnaround times of many of our internal processes. Finally, we are engaging with our offshore clients through video calls instead of travelling. We see a hybrid model of engagement becoming a norm in private banking where clients increasingly use digital channels to engage with us — in addition to direct interactions with the RM.
