Banks Spending More on Innovation: Report

Retail banks around the world are increasingly investing in innovation as a means of generating revenue and controlling costs, according to a new survey from software services provider Infosys and the European Financial Marketing Association (EFMA).

The 2013 "Innovation in Retail Banking" report, which surveyed 148 banks in 66 countries, found that 60% of banks surveyed have an innovation strategy compared to just 37% five years ago, when the report was first issued.

The study also found that to overcome the main barriers to innovation – legacy systems and organizational silos – banks are looking towards technologies that can simplify their operations and deliver a richer customer experience. In particular, mobile innovation is beginning to gather pace, with 77% of banks deploying or planning to deploy a mobile wallet solution, the study found.

Further, 77% of the banks surveyed are increasing investment in innovation, compared to 13% of banks that reported increased investment in the 2009 survey.

Among the specific areas of innovation highly cited, 69% of banks polled said they are deploying or planning to deploy mobile location-based offerings. Meanwhile, 45% of banks are already using or planning to invest in gamification, and 61% of currently allow or plan to allow customers to do some form of product personalization.

[Related Content: The Complicated Relationship Between Innovation and Security]

Bryan Yurcan is associate editor for Bank Systems and Technology. He has worked in various editorial capacities for newspapers and magazines for the past 8 years. After beginning his career as a municipal and courts reporter for daily newspapers in upstate New York, Bryan has ... View Full Bio