​​​​Abu Sayed Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman

The Internet of things is the network of devices, vehicles, and home appliances that contain electronics, software, actuators, and connectivity which allows these things to connect, interact and exchange data. In other words, IoT is just another form of “Big Data”. The definition of IoT itself explains that it deals with retail consumer data obtained from devices, vehicles etc connected via the internet. Now how can this be relevant to the way Banking industry does business? What can the Banking industry get out from using “Big Data” and “IoT”?

 

The term “data” is very powerful, the more of it one has, the more dimensions it can be used to know for providing services and products to the targeted customers more effectively and efficiently.

 

Banks providing retail products and services can benefit with this obtained and enriched data to know the saving and spending behaviour of its existing and future customers. Data can be obtained to know which segment of consumables is the customer interested in and how banks may target products such as travel loans, credit cards for spending etc.

 

We have seen Banks in Bangladesh gathering data and selling their products and services to targeted customers using their workforce or the “Direct Sales Agents”. This process of gathering data is costly and time consuming. Also at times it happens to become a missed opportunity. However, the Banking industry in Bangladesh will definitely find timely usage of IoT data to sell their products and services to the targeted customers as data is obtained as and when we start searching or doing research on the internet for consumables using particular “keywords” or “key phrases” such as:

1. Cheap or budget hotels

2. Getaways

3. Tripadvisor etc.

or even searching for “car loan”, “loan” etc

 

Banks can also use IoT to determine where to locate new branches, which services to offer in-branch and what sales targets to set. Similarly, measuring foot traffic at different branch locations helps banks determine the optimal number of Cash Recyclers to place at specific locations. A daytime/night time population, a concentration of high-income households, commercial buildings, competitive service providers are just some of the many factors that should be considered when placing ATMs as well as Cash Recyclers.

 

Artificial Intelligence or Machine Learning has started to be used in Banks mostly for determining the probable upcoming fraud activities by studying the bank’s customer transactional behaviour and pattern. However, although this trend may be seen in developed countries, Banks in Bangladesh are yet to grasp the benefits from deploying Artificial Intelligence or Machine Learning into the transactional data of the customers or even deploying the same with non-financial events triggered by the customer who are availing various products and services of the Bank. Moreover, the “Big Data” which is obtained from “IoT” requires more analytics to be used and in a lesser time. AI here can play an important role for the R&D departments of the banks as AI will take lesser time to provide data analytics in multiple dimensions obtained from IoT. We are seeing the usage of AI for Anti-Money Laundering solutions where transactional data are being analysed. Banks in Bangladesh which are technology savvy have already started implementing AI and machine learning to their already existing comprehensive AML solutions to combat Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing. They are using it for their existing customers, however, by combining IoT with AI, banks now will be able to screen customers as probable high risk customers who have a tendency to search or google the key words considered to be red flagged by regulatory authorities. Going forward, most technology savvy Banks in Bangladesh are in a spree to introduce “Cash Recyclers” and some are even replacing their ATMs with Cash Recyclers. Now as technology goes forward, the manufacturers of these Cash Recyclers are now introducing AI in these machines to capture the behaviour of the customers.

 

Will the future banking in Bangladesh see “Facial Recognition” and “Facial Expression” combined with Artificial Intelligence to determine what product or service the customer may want to receive from the branch when he/she walks-in? As more technology is coming out, Bangladesh being a tech savvy country may even see a “Smart Branch” operated only by cash recyclers for cash deposit and withdrawal; cheque printing kiosks for printing cheque leaves, pay orders and account statements; smart teller machines for account opening, fund transfer, cheque deposit, card printing; and what not?