Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) plans to use artificial intelligence and big data analysis to learn what customers need and maintain their loyalty, as emerging virtual banks are likely to poach existing establishments’ clients with fancy marketing and rewards, Cathay United Bank president Alan Lee (李偉正) said.
“No bank dares to say that they are not worried about competition from new virtual banks, and neither can we, but our advantage is that we have long relationships with our clients, know them better and can provide financial products to suit their exact preferences,” Lee said on Wednesday last week.
For example, the bank has used big data analysis to choose people who have a high demand for funds and might be interested in applying for personal loans, Lee said, adding that Cathay United then sends marketing information to those potential clients.
Photo: Kao Shih-ching, Taipei Times
Among the 5 million clients who use Cathay United Bank’s credit cards, about 60 percent have applied for its other financial products, such as mortgages, wealth management products or small loans, Lee said.
The bank aims to raise that ratio, he added.
“The more products the clients have or the more frequently they interact with us, the more difficult it is for them to leave us and the more loyal they are likely to become,” Lee said.
Cathay United Bank does not invest in any of the nation’s three virtual banks. The lender had 680,330 digital savings accounts as of the end of June, the second-highest after Taishin International Bank’s (台新銀行) Richart service, Financial Supervisory Commission data showed.
CTBC Bank (中國信託銀行), which holds a 5 percent stake in Web-only Line Bank (連線商業銀行), would not share its financial technology with the virtual bank, as it does not have a controlling stake in the lender, CTBC Financial Holding Co chief technology officer Titan Chia (賈景光) said.
CTBC Bank is also using artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, cloud computing, big data and user experiences to improve its online banking services, Chia said.
The bank might allow Line Bank’s clients to withdraw cash or conduct other transactions at its automated teller machines, with Line Bank paying the handling fees, he added.
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