Headquartered in Washington, Newgen Software is a global leader in offering Business Process Management (BPM), Enterprise Content Management (ECM), Customer Communication Management (CCM) and Case Management solutions to leading banks, BPOs, insurance firms and healthcare institutions.

Recently, one of my colleague, while transferring money to his wife's account, encountered an issue with his banks's online site and the payment failed. Didn't matter. He quickly launched his mobile wallet application (which as per him, he always keeps it loaded for emergency situations like this) and zapped the money to his wife's account. Anything strikes? Yes! The battle is on between our banking and FI giants and the fledglings in the Fintech community. Who would have thought a decade or so back? Being a Software Products enthusiast, it doesnt come as a surprise to me. However, what does surprise me is the pace at which the fintech startups community is aggressively eating into the market share of the incumbent banks and financial institutions.

Why Are Banks Stuck In The Downcard Syndrome?

Banks have always been seen as a dependable institution when it comes to handling public and corporate finances. However, it took one mortgage bubble burst to jolt everyone into reality that something might be amiss, somewhere. Banks were a pioneer upto some point of time when it comes to technology adoption. Computerization of bank branches and automation of banking processes with niche packaged apps became the norm. Internet banking, ATMs, mobile banking, telebanking, online money transfer through NEFT/RTGS are all pioneering technology that banks have offered to the public. However, with time, banks overlooked certain aspects in technology adoption and fell behind in the race for customer acquisition.

As I narrated above, my dear colleague did not deliberate upon payment failure whether to reattampt the transaction later at the bank's website. He simple opted for his mobile wallet that addressed his need for quick transaction. It is the customer experience part that banks are losing out on. The reason?