Marcio Rodrigues, Sales Director EMEA has just returned from a trip to Latin America, where he has been assisting with the deployment of Vizolution’s market-leading technology. Here, he discusses how our innovative suite of solutions can help play a part in accelerating Latin America's digital revolution.
For the last few years, we have been focusing on entering new markets and expanding our global footprint. This year alone, we have opened new offices in Wales, America and Canada.
Our recent £10m investment from RBS, Santander Consumer Finance, and HSBC will allow us to accelerate our growth into new markets, including North and South America.
I have just returned to London from a trip around Latin America and was really excited by what I saw there, and the digital revolution currently taking place in the banking sector.
According to a recently-released study from Temenos, an unprecedented number of Latin American banks are now reviewing their digital strategies in an effort to lower costs and increase access for the unbanked populations. Banks here are realising they must develop their banking efforts to not only improve their products and services but attract new customers who may have never banked before, due to a lack of internet connectivity or availability of branches.
The first stop on my Latin American trip was to Mexico, where I was there to meet several leading banks as well as assist with the roll-out and deployment of our transformative technology for a leading bank.
Our innovative digital suite will allow their customer contact agents interacting remotely, over the phone or online, to share, display, exchange, complete, verify and sign documents as if they were there in-branch.
Our solutions helps enterprises replicate the qualities of a face-to-face interaction within their remote channels (online or by telephone). This offers a customer-centred human approach in an increasingly digital world, acting as a perfect aid to an unbanked generation transitioning into the digital sphere.
The trip continued onwards to Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, where I was there to visit a number of other banks, all of which are looking at adopting similar solutions into their banking strategies.
Digital transformation is well underway in the West, with an increasing number of financial institutions, utilities, and telecoms that have already digitized their workforce.
Meanwhile, in Latin America, legislation is encouraging enterprises to complete their digital transformation, and collaborate with FinTech companies to deliver digital banking for both the unbanked, and the tech-savvy Latin Americans who regularly consume digital content and digital media and make purchases online.
Surprisingly, although almost half of the Latin American population doesn’t have a bank account, mobile services penetration is over 100%. This represents a big opportunity for revenue growth by being able to upsell/ cross-sell associated service bundles while on-boarding new customers.
Latin America's digital revolution is making it a truly mobile-first region, with an increasing number of people now having access to services that otherwise would have been out of reach. Smartphone proliferation and faster internet speeds have not only accelerated the need for many enterprises’ digital transformation, but also increased customer expectations for a certain type of mobile experience.
When I was in Latin America, I was amazed at how much business is done via WhatsApp. European regulation and compliance would prohibit anything like that in this region.
The changing customer behaviours and demands of the market has naturally led to increased expectation for effortless customer experiences.
Banks in Latin America are therefore realising they must prioritise their digital strategy, according to customer needs, new technologies, and, of course, impact from new competitors.
In recent years, there has been an influx of fintech businesses operating in Latin America, all in pursuit of capitalising on opportunities provided by the region’s poor high street banking services. Indeed, businesses are rushing to invest in the industry, and partner with incumbent banks to offer banking services to the 210 million Latin American people who do not have bank accounts.
The banking sector in Latin America has a real opportunity to not only overhaul its operations with the latest technology, but also implement more responsible banking practices. This will not only lead to more sustainable growth, but also help banks regain the trust of a population rocked by economic and political instability.
