Chatbots gaining momentum in mainstream banking

In March 2018, Citicorp launched a Facebook Messenger chatbot for its consumer banking clients in Singapore. They also plan to launch these chatbot-based services in Hong Kong and Australia later in 2018. Citicorp’s conversation-as-a-service enables customers to access account balances and credit card bill summaries. Citicorp intend to extend this capability into other areas such as wealth management services and retail banker services for selling products like cards and loans.

The Bank of Montreal has also launched a similar chatbot service initially focused on two channels: Facebook Messenger and Twitter. The deployment of chatbots is a key part of their strategy to provide an exceptional customer experience across all touchpoints, especially with digital as the preferred way for their customers to engage 24/7.

The Bank of America has introduced their chatbot Erica for notifying customers, providing balance information, making suggestions for saving money, providing credit report updates, paying bills and helping customers with simple transactions.

Wells Fargo has launched a similar chatbot deployed using Facebook Messenger.  

The affordability of chatbot technology means every bank can deliver conversation-as-a-service. For example, Diamond Bank, Nigeria’s fastest growing retail bank, has launched their chatbot called ‘Ada’ on Facebook Messenger, which is undertaking tasks such as checking bank balances, transferring funds, paying utility bills, applying for loans, and checking stock prices.  Similarly, another Nigerian firm, Heritage Bank is developing chatbots as part of its omnichannel strategy, starting with Facebook Messenger, Telegram Messenger, and Mobile (iOS and Android).