Standard Bank today introduced its Relationship Banking instant messaging service, which offers prestige and private banking customers 24/7/365 real-time support via WeChat, delivered by an always-on team of about 120 bankers.
The service aims to make banking hassle-free for users, as well as offer support in a broader array of circumstances, explained Sibongiseni Ngundze, head of retail banking at Standard Bank.
"Traditional methods of communication have their disadvantages," Ngundze acknowledged. On average, it takes 15 minutes for a call centre to handle a customer's call, while a branch visit can take one-and-a-half hours and customers can wait an entire day for an e-mail to be returned, according to the bank.
As well as delivering more immediate support at all hours, the service can efficiently deal with a variety of banking circumstances that would formerly have presented customers with significant challenges, said Tasneem Natha, senior manager of prestige banking and customer financial solutions at Standard Bank. For example, users can now make banking arrangements instantaneously while travelling overseas, irrespective of time zone differences, she noted.
Many Standard Bank customers are already using instant messaging platforms like WeChat to communicate with their bankers, and the Relationship Banking platform aims to respond to this need by offering a more secure way to do this, Natha continued.
In addition to going through a verification process on signing up for the service, users will be asked authentication questions to confirm their identity when using the service, such as their ID or account numbers, or more obscured information such as details about their monthly debit orders, she said.
Users are also welcome to use the service to offer feedback or complaints, said Natha, explaining the bank also aims to use this service to gauge customers' concerns.
To gain access to the Relationship Banking service, prestige and private customers can e-mail, phone or visit their bankers in-branch and provide their WeChat ID. Thereafter, they will be taken through the authentication process and registered on the service's network.
Users can then access the service by logging into WeChat and finding "Standard Bank" under "Official Accounts".
Prestige and private banking accounts with Standard Bank cost R179 per month and R325 per month respectively. "We're absolutely looking to introduce [the Relationship Banking service] to all our other customers in time," said Natha.
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