Banks Focus On Digital Platforms To Enhance Customer Experience And Keep Pace With Fintech Lenders: KPMG Report

NEW YORK, May 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Many banks have embraced the digital movement and are confident they are making strides to keep pace with emerging fintech competitors, according to a new banking report by KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm.

The report: The Need For Speed, can be accessed at: http://www.kpmg.com/us/2016bankingindustryoutlooksurvey.

KPMG surveyed 100 bank executives - representing banks in excess of $20 billion in assets – and found that more than half of the banking executives polled are confident about their bank's digital capabilities, while two-thirds believe they are actively embracing change.

"Banks realize they must adopt a truly digital mindset across the entire organization to keep up with consumer expectations," said Brian Stephens, national leader for KPMG's U.S. Financial Services practice and the firm's U.S. Banking and Capital Markets sector.  "This means going far beyond digital capabilities on the front-end and instilling a core focus on the customer that permeates every aspect of the organization."

New marketplace lenders are a threat. 
Thirty nine percent of the executives polled said they believe fintechs' pose a significant threat to the industry over the next few years.  However, 51 percent of those polled said their bank has already created an alliance or joint venture with a peer-to-peer or marketplace lender.

"Banks are forming ventures with fintech companies to increase speed, agility and flexibility, and to better align with the digital interests of business and retail customers," said Stephens.

Executives favorable on real-time payments, but slow to implement  
In the U.S., faster and more efficient real-time payment systems are increasingly becoming a focus for industry regulators, organizations, banks, and customers. They have already been mandated and/or implemented throughout Europe and Asia and are in use in Africa and South America.

While nearly three-quarters of the executives polled have favorable views regarding the business case for real-time payments, many of the U.S.'s largest banks don't plan on participating in the first wave of this transformation.  Twenty-nine percent of the executives polled said they plan to be first movers, while 52 percent said they will wait to participate until one to two years beyond the initial launch.

"Banks need to embrace this shift and enable real–time payments to prevent a loss of market share to new market entrants," said Stephens. "The need for speed cannot be understated as a new banking landscape unfolds, bringing with it a continuous wave of new competitors."

About KPMG LLP 
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.kpmg.com/us), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"). KPMG International's member firms have 174,000 professionals, including more than 9,000 partners in 155 countries.

SOURCE KPMG LLP

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