There has been a lot of talk over the recent years about the digitalization of life in general, and growing accustomed to some of its elements has become inevitable. A great majority of us cannot even imagine communicating without the social networks such as Viber or Facebook or not having a smart phone. We have become so accustomed to living in an online environment that anything we do on a laptop, tablet, or phone has become entirely intuitive. However, it is unclear, on the other hand, why some other segments of our life experiences, such as going to a bank for example, remain mainly traditional, and why is it we still find waiting in lines acceptable?
In most West European countries, the digitalization also included the banking sector that has imminently transformed itself to become more intuitive and available to clients. If our West European neighbours have done so, and we tend to follow them in any other global trend, why is it that we still resist the concept of digital banking? Is it the formality, because we are used to seeing serious-looking people working at bank offices? Is the security? Or is it, perhaps, because we are afraid of being able to do our banking on our own?
We will try to convince you that whatever your excuses may be, the digital banking is the best possible choice for you to make, for plenty of reasons. Although standing in a line and waiting for a lady in uniform to provide you with a service may give you an impression of formality, trust us that this only seems so at a first impression. The possibility of making such transactions from home – without waiting in a line and fully independently – is a much more comfortable option where you do not have to deal with frowns or irritable look on the face of a person at the other side of the counter.
Not only does the digital banking provide you with an opportunity to open an account, make money transfers, or apply for any other service online, but it also gives you the freedom to save. One of the reasons why the digitalization has not gained its full momentum in the banking sector of Bosnia and Herzegovina is that the traditional forms of business provide a better margin for banks. In other words, a brochure on digital banking is not thrust in your hands because a bank will earn more profit if you make a money transfer through a paper order at the bank than if you do it yourself on your phone.
The orders effected via the so-called Internet banking or digital channels in general will cost you up to even five times less than you would need to pay for the same service when it is done for you by a bank employee in a uniform, from the other side of the counter. This means that if you carry out your bank orders online, you can save 2.00 BAM or more per order.
We at ProCredit Bank have chosen to make digital banking our only way of working, and in addition have made all our client’s transfers through digital channels, free of charge. Whether you pay utility, send money to friends, or convert from KM to EUR, all these services in a digital bank, as ProCredit Bank is, are free.
Although digitalization is OK when it comes to communication, banking requires a certain degree of security, because working with money is not exactly the same as a conversation on Viber. How safe is my money with an online (digital) bank? This question is completely legitimate, because a bank should mean safety. Digital banks are subject to identical laws as traditional banks and their obligations toward you in terms of the law are in no way different from those of traditional banks. As far as the security of technology is concerned, digital banks make continuous investments in the security of the software they use, since that is the only way their service can be provided to you as the end user.
All applications used by digital banks have dual and triple authentication systems guaranteeing that you are the sole manager of your finance. If you are that kind of a person who favours going to the bank as soon as a problem crops up and solving it face to face, transferring to the digital banking could be a challenge. However, you will certainly be reassured when you learn that digital banks put enormous efforts in creating appropriate contact centres to provide technical support for their clients, while a competent and dedicated person who can solve your problem is only one telephone call away.
In the end, we do agree with you that shifting from traditional banking to full digital banking takes a big step. Nonetheless, considering the context we are living in and where having extra spare time and financial savings are challenging, it could also be a step that is already intuitive to you. It would be best if you tried the benefits of digital banking, because we are certain that the feeling would be the same as when you got your first smartphone – you will never want to go back to Nokia 3310.