WFH trend fuels digital account growth

A new study by OneSpan, published March 19, 2020, confirms remote account openings are on the rise. Payments analysts expect this trend to continue in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The State of Digital Account Opening Transformation” surveyed more than 100 financial institutions tasked with balancing security with customer convenience. Fortunately, advanced technologies make it possible for service providers to deliver both security and excellent customer experience, according to Scott Clements, CEO at OneSpan, a global security provider.

“The digital revolution has shifted the way consumers want to engage with their financial institutions, away from in-person toward immediate and convenient remote transactions,” Clements said, in a statement. “There no longer needs to be a trade-off between security and a positive customer experience – partners like OneSpan enable banks to deliver remote transactions, including digital account opening, without sacrificing security.”

“Everyone is being told to work from home,” said Tim Bedard, director, product marketing, at OneSpan. “This will require financial institutions to enable digital remote access to allow existing customers to log in and unknown applicants to securely validate their identities.”

Key survey findings

Bedard observed that half the financial institutions surveyed cited legacy systems, manual identity verification processes, authentication friction, and inability to detect fraudulent identities as top challenges. A majority plan to invest in innovative fraud detection and prevention solutions such as biometrics, behavioral biometrics, digital identity, document verification and electronic signatures, he stated.

Following are additional research highlights:

• 85 percent of respondents experienced digital account opening fraud, with more than 50 percent citing inadequate processes and security measures.

• 80 percent of respondents prioritize improving the customer experience; 60 percent agreed poor customer experience was a leading cause of application abandonment.

• 72 percent of respondents plan to reduce fraud and losses related to application fraud, account takeover and synthetic identities.

• 49 percent of respondents rated current digital account opening application process as insecure or only somewhat secure.

Digital auditing, engagement

With fewer people visiting bank branches, banks need to find a way to continue to attract new customers, Bedard noted. Cloud-based security agreement automation can efficiently and expeditiously capture information, validate identities, and import documents directly into mobile banking apps. These capabilities can help financial institutions simplify workflows and create origination audit trails, he stated.

As he reflected on survey findings, Bedard mentioned that all levels of financial institutions, from top tier banks to small community banks, expressed concern about delivering an excellent customer experience, which 90 percent of respondents characterized as a priority.

“With 75 percent of consumers preferring online and mobile app banking, banks need to protect their customers from application fraud and synthetic identity fraud,” Bedard said. “In an age of faster payments and faster fraud, advanced digital technologies can help financial institutions solidify their customer base and build topline revenue.”

A full copy of the survey is available at: www.onespan.com/resources/ismg-digital-account-opening-2020

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