Even though Filipinos are considered to be one of the most digitally-savvy people in Asia, banking in the country still involves visiting branches, queueing up, and being charged for most banking transactions. A far cry from our western counterparts who use digital banking provided by fintechs or digital banks with no physical branches for day-to-day transactions.
While digital banking is slowly gaining traction among local bank account holders, most people might not know the difference between the online banking channel of a traditional bank and an-all digital bank.
We spoke to Mohamed Keraine, who now heads retail banking at ING in the Philippines after spending more than 10 years in France and Netherlands, on the advantages of an all-digital bank.
“The reality is that nobody wants to spend time on banking, especially when it means taking time to visit the bank branches and waiting in line. With the internet and mobile phones, people should be able to choose where and when they want to engage with the banks. The challenge for banks is to make banking instant and available anytime, anywhere. That is what we bringing to the Philippines – an all-digital bank that is designed to be easy and instant, with a differentiating customer experience,” Keraine said.
Here are a few things that might convince you to sign up for an account with fully digital bank:
1. You can do more with your time through online banking
Convenience is one of the biggest reasons behind the current shift towards digital and mobile banking. The idea is that with digital banking, customers no longer have to wait in long lines just to get their transactions done. Most banks in the Philippines offer online and/or mobile banking so customers can complete basic transactions such as checking balances without going to a bank branch. But for more complicated processes such as account opening and check deposits are still conducted in the bank branches. The launch of ING Bank last November has raised the benchmark by offering complete account opening and check deposit via mobile phone.
2. You get to have better interest rates
With lower operating costs from not having physical branches, “digital-only” banks are designed to provide ideal interest rates to their customers that can help in making your money grow. For example, ING Bank offers an interest rate of 2% per annum that is higher compared to the national average of 0.09%.
3. Secured banking available anytime, anywhere
Fully-digital banks give customers the control on when and where they want to do their banking, even if it is in the early hours of the morning or while in transit from one city to another.
And because there are no branches set in place, these banks put in much more attention on security and customer experience. With a growing number of people switching to digital banking, new solutions like face recognition are being applied to ensure the highest level of security in mobile devices and customer support are available 24/7.
4. No paper billing = zero-waste.
Since all your transactions are done online, you can now enjoy the benefit of having a paperless trail of all your deposits, transfers, withdrawals, and other banking processes through the app. Not only do you have records which can be accessed anytime, you also get to conserve paper and help the fight for zero-waste.
5. ‘Branchless’ banks are big in foreign countries
Branchless banking started in Europe and the U.S. more than 20 years ago. As a global bank with presence in more than 40 countries, ING is especially known for its branchless, fully digital banking in Europe and Australia. In fact, ING has been awarded by Global Finance Magazine as Best Bank in the World 2017 and Best Bank in Western Europe for four consecutive years.
After 28 years in the Philippines serving local and multinational corporations, ING has just launched the first all-digital bank in the country. ING requires no minimum amount, no maintaining balance, and no transaction fees. Apart from that, enjoy higher interest rates from ING at 2% per annum.
Be among the first to experience the country’s first fully digital bank. You can download the app on Google Play Store or on the App Store for free! For more information, visit www.ing.com.ph. INQUIRER.net BrandRoom/FE
