Gustavo Quiroga

Cultural shifts in banking behaviours are a top concern for Australian banks, according to a new report. A Global Benchmark for Sustainable Banking 2022, commissioned by Mobiquity and conducted by Censuswide, reveals almost half (47%) of Australian banks see cultural shifts in banking behaviours as a concern from a board level.

The top concern was followed by burdensome regulatory compliances (43%) and sustainable banking practices (42%) to round off the trifecta of top concerns for bank boards.

Gustavo Quiroga, General Manager for Mobiquity in APAC said the findings prompt the urgency to address the growing needs of emerging markets by innovating at the pace of the customer.

“The pace of digital transformation has brought with it mounting customer expectations, which is in turn applying pressure on banks to innovate in line with the cultural shifts in banking behaviours. The findings of this report highlight the need for banks to continuously audit whether they are in fact innovating at the speed of the customer and meeting social governance principles,” said Mr Quiroga.

Last month, Mobiquity launched a new digital Islamic banking prototype to help support emerging community banking trends that are underpinned by religious beliefs. The prototype sparks a discussion around how Australia’s banking and finance sector can innovate to support small and important emerging communities in society.

Mobiquity’s benchmark report also revealed the top strategic imperatives of Australian banks, as part of their bank sustainability agenda. Almost one in three (30%) of respondents agreed that embracing emerging technologies to make digital services available remotely is a key priority.

“Living in a vast geographical landscape such as Australia, the need for remote digital services to enable financial inclusion is just the bare minimum expected by today’s customers. Banks now need to look beyond this basic criteria and address looming social challenges that evolve from inclusion, such as the need to support financial health,” said Mr Quiroga.

“With customers ready and able to adopt digital initiatives, the benefits of enlisting digital sustainable banking practices are there for the taking. Our report shows that banks are already experiencing an increase in profitability and operational efficiency, as well as a reduction in costs through the adoption of digital products,” he said.

Connuil McEvedy, Chief Risk Officer at Shaype, said the cultural shifts will beg the need for new products and services to support financial inclusion and well-being.

“The report is valuable in identifying emerging cultural behaviours, particularly with reference to digital banking, remote access, and Islamic banking. We must always be aware of unintended consequences on vulnerable parts of society during cultural change. The challenge is for incumbent banks to adapt positively to this environment by improving their capability in practice,” said Mr McEvedy.

The report findings also reveal:

• key barriers to adopting sustainable behaviours is the lack of universally recognised regulation and enforcement (31%), stakeholders (27% and lack of customer demand (27%)
• top strategic sustainability imperatives of Australian banks are mitigating climate risks by assessing portfolios (31%), followed by embracing emerging
  technologies to make digital services available remotely (30%) and driving sustainability as part of an ESG strategy (29%)
• key initiatives employed by Australian banks to be sustainable are remote working (55%), digital solutions (48%) and investment in carbon credits (45%)
• just over half of Australian banks are measuring sustainability as part of ESG targets, falling short of US counterparts where two thirds admit to measuring sustainability as part of ESG targets
• cost savings (27%), attraction of long-term investors (26%) and a positive contribution to society (25%) were listed as the key benefits of adopting sustainable banking.

Mobiquity, part of Hexaware, continues to work with banks across Asia Pacific including Standard Bank, Citi Bank, Bank of Sydney and ME Bank. The company aims to create successful digital products that are rooted in human behaviour, emotions and needs.

Read the global benchmark for sustainable banking 2022.

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