New rules can put banks on digital path

Banks should be catering to this highly digital society, which is also willing to spend online. According to Accenture research, the forecasted compound annual growth rate of online payments in China between 2010 and 2017 will be 51 percent. The rate for the same period for mobile payments is forecasted to be 114 percent.

If China's customers are digitally savvy and willing to pay for products online, banks looking to secure the consumers and the businesses selling to those consumers should be offering digital solutions for online and mobile services.

Some banks may evaluate becoming purely digital. This is already considered a possibility. About 60 percent of bank customers globally purchased bank products and services online last year, up 6 percent on the previous year, while in-branch purchases declined 6 percent, according to a survey of more than 16,000 retail bank customers in 33 countries by Accenture.

The survey also found that customers in emerging markets such as Brazil, China and Indonesia are most receptive to the idea of a purely digital bank－open 24 hours a day, with no branches or call centers.

Overall, nearly half of respondents to the survey in emerging markets said they would consider using a purely digital bank, compared with just 22 percent in mature markets such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

Chinese banks should consider three key aspects in their journey toward becoming digital.

First, make the entire customer experience digital－from taking on clients and educating them about new products to self-service banking and reporting.

Second, customize information to suit each client and provide better advice through digital channels.

Third, give customers more control with digitalized self-service tools, personalization, and reporting.

Whether a bank chooses to go down the route of exclusive digital services or the more traditional blend of brick-and-mortar banks with digital capabilities, it doesn't matter. What is key is that it ensures services are seamlessly integrated. If a customer begins a service transaction on his or her smartphone, that customer should be able to complete it on a laptop, tablet or in person. If a customer provides personal data once to a bank, that information should be available across all networks and channels of the bank and not repeatedly obtained.

For most banks, that digital experience implies an operating model transformation at all levels, from the branches to the back office to the customer-service functions. It is extremely important that banks become more collaborative. It won't work otherwise. It requires a new level of automation and digitized processes to enable the "just in time" services that customers want. And this requires breaking down bank silos and ensuring collaboration.

What kinds of bank are likely to achieve this? Those that truly embrace technology.