Use of mobile banking has overtaken physical branch interactions the past 12 months in Singapore. However, there are a number of roadblocks to overcome before the Lion City can truly be considered a digital economy.
Despite the mobile banking channels making significant progress, the user experience still has a way to go, the J.D. Power 2018 Singapore Retail Banking Satisfaction Study reveals. Among mobile banking customers, 46 percent indicate having experienced a problem with their mobile banking app, such as long loading times and login problems, which is a higher percentage than the 43 percent in 2017.
«As banks continue to evolve the mobile banking user experience and digital offerings, they need to place the customer at the heart of their transformation. This may not only help to improve the perception of the bank as customer-oriented and innovative, but also deepen the relationship with their customers and build trust,» said Anthony Chiam, Regional Practice Leader, Financial Services at J.D Power.
Critical Abundance of Choice
Building trust and confidence becomes even more crucial, as 41 percent of customers not yet using mobile banking app cite security and trust as the primary reason, an increase of 7 percentage points from last year.
Customers are facing an abundance of choice, amplified even more by disruptions in the industry, such as the trend toward virtual banking. Among customers who say they would be open to virtual banking – banking with no physical branches – 52 percent indicate they would do so with an entity outside of the banking sector, such as fintech or technology companies; however, 66 percent of customers say they will remain with their current bank even if all of its physical branches were closed.
Additional Key Findings
- Overall satisfaction has increased: Customers are more satisfied with their primary banks in 2018, compared with last year (755 vs. 736, respectively, on a 1,000-point scale).
- OCBC ranks highest in retail banking customer satisfaction with an overall score of 773. OCBC achieves the highest score in two of the six study factors: account activities and facility. Citibank ranks second with a score of 764 and DBS ranks third with 758.
- Popularity of peer-to-peer mobile payment services: Nearly half of customers have used PayNow in the past 12 months. The study also finds that 64 percent of bank customers use at least one mobile wallet or payment app, which is higher than in Hong Kong (52 percent in 2018) and Australia (19 percent in 2017).
- Apple Pay ranks highest in satisfaction among mobile wallets: The most frequently used apps are DBSPayLah! (28 percent); ApplePay (13 percent); GrabPay (12 percent); and NetsPay (12 percent).
- Key reasons for choosing a bank: Attractive interest rates (21 percent) is the primary reason for selecting a bank, followed by the branch being conveniently located near the customer’s work/ home (18 percent) and trust in the bank (14 percent).
The 2018 Singapore Retail Banking Satisfaction Study examines customer satisfaction with the products and services provided by their primary financial institution. The study measures overall satisfaction in six factors: account activities (42 percent); account information (18 percent); facility (14 percent); product offerings (12 percent), fees (10 percent); and problem resolution (5 percent). The study is based on responses from 2,520 retail banking customers. Coverage includes eight major banks in the market, six of which are rank-eligible, with scores based on customers’ primary bank experiences. The study was fielded in May through June 2018. J.D. Power conducts a series of retail banking studies across key financial markets, including Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong and the U.S.
