The American Bankers Association is urging financial institutions to use financial technology as a way to reach customers who otherwise can’t find advice, and warns that those companies who shun robo-advice will miss the boat.
The association released a fintech playbook on Monday at its annual convention in Nashville. The ABA thinks that banks will employ fintech to assist rather than replace human financial advisors.
The report, which the association prepared with the help of consulting firm Accenture, says that robo-advisors can augment human advice and help advisors in different market conditions readjust client portfolios and harvest tax losses with minimum human intervention. That way, “investments can simultaneously become more personalized and less human dependent,” the association said in the report.
The guidebook said personal financial management tools and services can consolidate customers’ portfolios, giving them a full view and encouraging better behaviors and habits in them.
The study predicted that the annual value of robo-advisory services for banks would be $1 billion by 2020.
The report also predicted the emergence of video advice allowing clients to speak with experts on mobile devices, saying it could become a $1.5 billion business in four years.
The report noted that some bank executives and line employees might have to be dragged into using robo-operations.
“Fintech can be disruptive,” the report conceded, but it can also help banks meet changing customer needs, deliver innovative products, reduce costs and deliver exceptional customer service.
The report says fintech is critical for banks because those who invest in it stand to gain $20 billion in revenue by 2020 while those that don’t could lose $15 billion.