The emergence of information technologies and the generalisation of their use in the society brand from some time ago, the development of the financial sector. Hence, the aspiration of many entities pass through to become platforms or digital networks that allow users to address all of their financial needs independently, and without the need to scroll.
we are Witnessing the so-called fifth revolution of the banking system. Officially, he was born in 2012. The digital disruption generated since then a change in the business model and in the approach of the strategies, profitability, reputation, regulation and cybersecurity.
According to analysts, there are several keys to achieving this transformation. In the first place, “it is necessary to pass a vision focused on the individual as a company with a vision focused on global,” according to the report, The future of the financial sector, Vodafone, will participate in the Manuel Cantalapiedra, and Francisco Pérez, director of Innovation, Santander, Spain, and director of Strategy in the Investment Area of Santander Spain, respectively.
“The competition for talent will become one of the main fields of battle in the financial world,” predicts the paper to the challenge of the conversion of the banks in platforms. He also warns that “to meet the needs of new knowledge and skills required by the labour market will be increasingly complicated.”
The entities that know how to combine technological solutions, such as big data, artificial intelligence, or blockchain, among others, achieved “a financial growth three times higher than that of their competitors less analytical,” he says. In the background, the backbone of this strategy requires in-depth knowledge of the customer and identify their needs.
work from phone
The generalization of mobile devices is changing radically the model of distribution of business of the banking sector. Customers are already permanently connected. “They want to operate at any time and from any place, they are accustomed to digital experiences and use multiple devices and applications”, remember the study.
In this context, the experts advance that cybersecurity has become one of the major concerns of the sector, given that the incidents related to this area can cause economic losses to the entities and create a number of damages, “including loss of data, damage to your corporate reputation or leaks of confidential information”.
The development of new applications for mobile devices is one of the major challenges facing the banking. It is a territory in continuous ferment. Through the mobile phone, can be made as bank transfers, card payments, search for atms, control and management of accounts or investment operations, among many others.
This speedy transformation of the banks on digital platforms, together with a change of mentality, has altered the traditional physiognomy of the entities. The development of payment systems and the new digital applications limit the need for establishments physical. According to data from the Bank of Spain, the Spanish financial system had at the end of last year with 26.011 branches, the lowest number since 1980. In 2008, for example, the number of bank offices reached its historical maximum: 45.707, almost 19.700 more than now. Everything has happened in a decade.
Open an account with the bakery of author
Not only has changed the model of relationship of banks with their customers in the digital world. Also what has been done in the physical terrain, as witnessed by the emergence of new concepts. Work Coffee, devised by Banco Santander, is one of them. The entity defined as “a collaborative space open to all, in which you can work, connect to the Internet, hold meetings, attend events and, of course, perform financial management”. The establishment, open for both customers as well as for people who are not, account with a bank team that serves in-situ and also offers the possibility to taste high quality coffee and pastry author.
The idea was born in Chile. In addition to implementing this ground-breaking proposal, the entity has transferred to Brazil, Argentina, Portugal, United Kingdom and Spain. The five Work Cafes with which our country is located in Madrid, in the Plaza of the Sacred Hearts, 1; Velázquez, 31; Count of Penalver, 46; Paseo de Recoletos, 19; and Luis Moya Blanco, 20, in Valdebebas.
According to Banco Santander, the opening of accounts in this novel typology of branches is between two and four times higher than that of the traditional office. In Spain, the number of customers is increasing at a good pace, with growth rates that reach the double digits, and between the plans of the entity include the opening of more offices of these features.
what Office, bar or ‘coworking’ design?
Interior of a Work Coffee of Banco Santander. Santander
In the Work Cafes of Banco Santander, visitors can work with unlimited Internet access via wifi, to carry out financial management, to attend events scheduled by the entity, hold meetings, and perform all kinds of procedures financial while take a coffee, and are served by expert baristas.
The design of architectural interiors, welcoming, and clearly differential, transfers the idea of a new concept of space banking. The entity has not neglected the local producers and has ensured that the providers of the establishments they are Spanish. The goal, ultimately, is that the client “do not go for need to bank, but want to get in on it”, according to Santander.
In every Work Coffee, the spaces coworking allow professionals with skills and common interests to work closely together and create opportunities together. The corners destined to collaborative projects, and the rooms to be booked are attractive to these profiles, as they can weave networks of contact, or simply find a relaxed atmosphere surrounded by like-minded people. This type of branches, with philosophy, boutique not only aims to keep the clients more traditional. It also wants to attract new ones, as surely they would never enter in a office conventional. The hours of opening also makes it easy. Anyone can visit these establishments from Monday to Friday from 8.30 to 19.00, and on Saturdays from 9.30 to 14.00.
