Regional banks speed digital transformation

Regional banks are accelerating digital transformation to meet growing internal business innovation needs and customers’ expectations of a better banking experience, according to a new industry study.

Over 90 percent of the regional commercial banks surveyed had started digital transformation, and more than one-fifth want to seek outstanding business performance with the help of technology, according to a white paper released by JD Digits and IDC, a third-party analytics firm.

Digital banking transformation aims to reform traditional players from the inside out by reshaping the relationship between organizations and people and building data-driven capabilities, so as to expand marketing channels, improve customer experience and realize business growth, the report said.

Compared with state-owned major lenders and joint-stock banks, regional banks are confronted with problems such as unclear digital strategies, insufficient investment in research and development and the slow pace of product innovation.

The top three challenges facing the digital transformation of regional players are difficulties in communication between departments, lack of technical talent and ability as well as poor data foundation, according to the survey.

The white paper believes that regional banks need to choose differentiated development paths based on their own conditions.

City commercial banks should "run in small steps" by actively trying innovative applications and developing more mobile banking business, while rural commercial banks should spend more efforts in building their online business platforms and making innovative offerings.

Banks are also paying more attention to big data technology, as data will be the core asset of future banks, the study noted.