Business

Stay committed to the digitisation drive —ARB advises RCBs

The future of banking is digital and that places a call on rural and community banks (RCBs) to be committed to technology which will help them to survive stiff competition and become sustainable, Executive Director of the Association of Rural Banks (ARB-Ghana), Mrs Comfort Owusu, has indicated.

Addressing the 18th National Managers Conference for RCBs organised by the ARB Apex Bank in the Bono Region, she encouraged rural banks to leverage data-driven dynamic decisions as a tool to enhance proper planning towards growth and expansion.

 “Digitalisation has found many ways and means of accessing banking services and this calls on us, as rural and community banks, to radically alter our perspectives and context of business in order to stay strong and maintain growth in the face of stiff competition in the banking industry,” she said.

She added:“There is a high price to pay if we do not embrace digitisation; however, if we pursue the goal of digitalising our operations as rural and community banks, there is much to be gained.”

Mrs Owusu said digitisation, which encompasses the designing of mobile-based products and services, would enable rural and community banks to enhance the banking experience to clients as they [customers] could easily manage large amounts and make transactions conveniently.

“For instance, digitalisation reduces human error; when clients realise that they do not have to spend time at the bank resolving errors and issues, their loyalty to the bank is built,” she said.

She said: “It will reduce the long queues at the banking halls and the stress of having to deal with clients on one-on-one basis as well as increase productivity since much work could be done in less time.”

According to her, one concrete step to achieving digitalisation would be for RCBs to partner with tech-based companies operating in the banking space.

Mrs Owusu said: “These fin-techs could periodically impart tech-based products and education to the management and staff of RCBs which will prepare them for the change ahead.”

“Secondly, those tech-based products borne out of RCB’s partnership with the fin-techs should be piloted or experimented to ensure the rolling out of viable and cutting-edge products and services that is tailored to the need of clients and can stand competition,” she said.

At the top-level, she advised rural and community banks to adopt a framework that would enable them to monitor the digitisation process, including building a roadmap that would outline their digital for the short, medium and long terms.

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