AI in Banking – What it can do & its benefits.
Since its inception, the banking industry has been a staunch opponent of change. However, financial services are not immune to the world’s largest technological transformation, which has been attributed to AI. Apart from the pressure to adapt to the digital economy, banks have begun to uncover some quite beneficial AI applications. AI has made significant progress in the financial sector, transforming how banks approach their employees, procedures, and data. AI is altering the traditional way banks work, from customer service automation with chatbots to security, fraud protection and detection, and internal process optimization.
According to Autonomous Next research seen by Business Insider Intelligence, the total potential cost savings for banks from AI applications is estimated to be $447 billion by 2023, The front and middle offices accounted for $416 billion of this total. Disruptive AI technologies, in general, have the potential to significantly improve banks’ ability to achieve the desired outcomes. Banks that fail to integrate AI into their core strategy and operations are being risk overtaken by competitors and abandoned by their customers.
How can Artificial Intelligence be Used in Banking?
While the banking industry has traditionally been data-driven and technology-dependent, new data-enabled AI technology has the potential to propel innovation further and quicker than ever before. AI may aid in increasing efficiency, enabling a growth agenda, increasing differentiation, managing risk, regulatory requirements, and improving customer experience. In the past, advanced AI systems have been prohibitively expensive, which has limited their use to a few important use cases (e.g., high-frequency trading). The banking institution that has implemented AI technologies, costs and other hurdles to adoption are decreasing, and it is getting easier to develop and integrate AI technologies.
The following are some of the most common AI applications in the banking industry:
1. Regulatory Compliance and Fraud Detection
The banking industry has a tumultuous history that has cost investors millions of dollars. Legislation such as the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) imposes severe penalties on players who violate the regulations. It is thus in the best interests of banks and financial institutions to automate compliance wherever possible.
Early fraud identification and thorough audit documentation are made possible by using DMS (decision management system). Employees are called away from their desks to give missing details or clarify entries during third-party auditing activities, which can be disruptive to normal operations. Information gathered in the system will be correct with the right software and machine learning, and errors will be highlighted and prohibited instantly.
Fraudsters’ behavior changes as financial institutions increase their vigilance because large sum transactions are flagged for investigation, fraudsters have learned to operate in amounts just below the detection threshold. Criminal activity can go undetected despite meeting the prescribed requirements if proper analysis is not performed. This is one area where artificial intelligence outperforms humans. Large amounts of data are analyzed by artificial intelligence to identify suspicious transactions. Manually analyzing such transactions results in errors. Without an AI fraud detection system in place, criminals have a field day laundering money or financial illegal activities.
2. Stronger Investment Evaluation
Interest income is only one source of income. As a result, banks are constantly looking for profitable opportunities to invest in and earn a healthy return.
The right investment software can make investment recommendations that are appropriate for these institutions’ risk tolerance. Furthermore, because industry-specific information is frequently difficult to understand, they can accurately evaluate client funding proposals.
Human analysts continue to make investment decisions. Investment analysis software simplifies the process and allows for more variables to be considered. Accessing information can be time-consuming if the institution has interests outside of its national borders. Assessing a new environment can be difficult, but the right AI software can help speed up the process.
3. Risk administration
Credit extension is a difficult task for bankers. A bank may face difficulties if it lends money to insolvent customers. If a borrower loses a steady source of income, he or she will default. According to statistics, credit card delinquencies in the United States increased by 1.4 percent in six months in 2020.
To avoid this level of default, AI-powered systems can more accurately appraise customer credit histories. Financial transactions are tracked and user data is analyzed using mobile banking apps. This assists banks in anticipating risks associated with loan issuances, such as customer insolvency or the threat of fraud.
4. Enriching Transaction Data
For both Banking institutions and consumers transaction data enrichment, it is an important aspect of financial management. It deciphers nonsensical sequences of letters that represent transactions and merchants and translates them to understandable text that reveals each merchant’s name and specifies their address and city using machine learning and artificial intelligence. It shows the location of the local shopkeeper rather than the company headquarters. This way of converting difficult-to-understand data into simple information aids both banks and customers in understanding where and with whom they spent their money.
5. Improved Customer Service
Customers are always seeking ways to save time and money. The ATM, for example, was a success because it provided customers with access to a critical service even when banks were closed. That level of convenience has sparked even more creativity. Clients can now open bank accounts and verify their identities from the comfort of their own homes using their smartphones.
A decision management system (DMS) can reduce the time it takes to acquire Know Your Customer (KYC) information and remove errors in the hunt for a faster turnaround time. Furthermore, with the right business rules software, business choices may be made and pushed out quickly and easily.
New products and financial offerings for the season can be made accessible on time. In addition, the system can readily handle new business choices or tariff changes. Because eligibility is automatic, clients who do not qualify are not irritated by having to go through the full process only to be turned down. Despite a diverse consumer base, this type of technology gives the impression of a personal touch. Reduced turnaround time can help banks earn clients’ trust and confidence. In addition, DMS software can help facilities cut approval times.
Bank personnel occasionally open accounts inadvertently, resulting in account limits. For a client, this can be extremely aggravating. A smooth experience for your consumers is ensured by accurately gathering client information and correctly setting up client accounts.
6. More accurate loan and facility evaluations
Credit ratings are frequently based on obsolete information, misclassification, and inaccuracies to determine eligibility for lending. However, with so much more information available online these days, it’s possible to get a more accurate picture of the person or business being evaluated.
Even if the party, whether personal or business, has minimal paperwork, an AI-based system can make approval or rejection suggestions by examining more criteria.
The problematic issue is that the software’s reasoning for making a particular recommendation isn’t always evident. When an application is granted, no one asks any questions. When an application is denied, however, the institution is required to provide the client with an explanation.
Although systems are designed to be objective, they might show bias. This is because configurations are only as excellent as their creators. Thankfully, the majority of funding requests that institutions receive are comparable, and individuals are aware of institutional prejudice. As a result, while building applications and upgrades, developers are better positioned to key in better variables.
7. Reduced Operational Costs and Risks
Human interaction has one important downside, as much as we like it. Errors happen all the time, and they can have major consequences. Even when experienced people are in charge, a single incorrect keystroke can expose the institution to liability and cause irreversible reputational damage.
By developing logic processes in data gathering and using predictive and prescriptive strategies to solve business challenges, decision management systems lessen this risk.
As an example, consider onboarding. You can use DMS to create rules that show clients which account types they can open based on their bio-data or company information.
When a client opens an account online, their age and source of income can influence the sort of account they can open. Underage people won’t be able to open accounts in their names, and personal savings accounts won’t have an overdraft. As a result, you’ll require fewer customer-facing personnel, lowering your labor costs.
Furthermore, as the accuracy of transactions and activities improves, the number of personnel required to assess transactions and activities decreases.
8. Mobile Banking
AI functionality in mobile apps is becoming more proactive, customized, and advanced. For example, one Canadian Bank has included Siri in its iOS app. Now, to send money to another card, it’s enough to say something like: “Hey, Siri, send $20 to Tom!” Thanks to AI, banks generate almost 66% more revenue from mobile banking users in comparison to when customers visit branches.
To have an edge over their competitors and enhance their quality of services banking organizations are paying close attention to emerging technology.
9. AI Chatbot
Bots communicate with customers on the bank’s behalf without incurring significant costs. According to research, each communication handled by the chatbot saves financial institutions four minutes.
Banks embed chatbot services in mobile apps because customers use them to conduct financial transactions. This allows you to capture the attention of users and establish a market-recognizable brand.
The launch of the Ceba chatbot, for example, was a huge success for the Australian Commonwealth Bank. Approximately half a million customers were able to use it to resolve over 200 banking issues, including activating their cards, checking account balances, withdrawing cash, and so on.
Bank of America, for example, launched a chatbot that sends users notifications, informs them about their balances, makes money-saving recommendations, and updates credit reports, among other things. This is how the bank assists its customers in making informed decisions.
Conclusion
The increasing adoption of AI promises to have a long-term impact on the banking industry. Even though banks still face significant operational and organizational challenges, they are making headway in implementation and adoption. To reap the full benefits of AI, banks must stay the course and continue to lay the technological foundations and processes required to move forward into the future.