As more and more Myanmar banks streamline and digitalise their operations, customers stand to benefit from more efficient, transparent and trustworthy banking services. Thanks to rapid growth in the commercial banking sector over the past decade, technological transfers are making it possible for local banks to offer financial systems and related services like never before.
That said, it is still too soon to say that the digital banking revolution has left Myanmar fully transformed into a cashless society. The World Bank estimates that less than 20 per cent of the population uses formal financial services, placing the number of those currently unbanked at approximately 45 million.
Along with the rest of the world, Myanmar remains cash-intensive. In fact, as the undisputed champion on the current payments ecosystem, cash accounts for 85 per cent of global consumer transactions, according to a 2013 study. Cash usage around the world continues to hold steady, and is forecasted to increase in most regions by 2020. Optimising the process of managing and moving all that physical currency can be a complex and tedious task, but behind those challenges lies an opportunity. Given the right tools and solutions, Myanmar banks can uncover powerful insights into that process, leading to new ways to drive efficiency and effectiveness.
As the starting point, let’s look at the breadth of ATM coverage in Myanmar. As of 2015, there were only some 1,800 ATMs installed in the country, or 33 per million population, one of the lowest in the ASEAN region. That needs to change. Consumers deserve easy access to their cash, anytime, anywhere. What also needsto evolve is the perspective that ATMs are merely cash dispensers. More than just being a self-service terminal, the latest technology in ATM provides functional services that may be more cost-effective for banks and more efficient for customers – from depositing to withdrawing, paying bills and more. To get there, it requires a journey of transaction migration and branch transformation. The design of a bank branch has a strong influence on the experience its consumers will have. Layout changes need to be determined strategically and the staff would need to be trained on how to make the most of the new layout and new technology. Introducing new technology alone will not lead to a successful transformation. People and processes are equally critical.
With tailored software and hardware solutions, banks have the ability to choose which system authenticates, processes and posts the transaction – the standard ATM network versus the branch system – to develop an approach that works best for your unique priorities. What makes it even more appealing is the flexibility to deliver enhanced and complex transactions to customers in the self-service channel while not increasing – and potentially even decreasing – the cost of the transaction. Then, you can start to dive into the bigger opportunities, things like multi-channel capabilities and omnichannel consumer experiences. Consider how it would differentiate your brand if your customers could start a transaction on their smartphone, then head to a self-service terminal to retrieve their cash. What about allowing them to use their online banking credentials for authentication at the ATM instead of their debit card and PIN, or offering multiple transaction sets like depositing a paycheck with some cash back and paying a bill at the same time, all through a full-function self-service device?
There’s no one way to get to the final destination of this journey to provide better consumer experiences. At the end of the day, both its path and destination will be uniquely Myanmar-owned. But one thing for sure, that journey begins with a simple step. Piers Leach is the Myanmar Country Manager for Diebold Nixdorf, the world leader in enabling connected commerce for millions of consumers each day across the financial and retail industries.
