Traditional banks are struggling to make the pivots necessary to keep up with the latest technological trends while still delivering on customers’ needs. With many depending on legacy systems to conduct daily operations, it has been difficult for these long-established players to be nimble, and they often lose out to competitors that can launch the newest technology.

During the PaymentsJournal podcast, Tom Kleinsorge, Vice President of Global Software Sales at Euronet Worldwide, and Brian Riley, Director of Credit/Co-Head of Payments at Javelin Strategy & Research, explored the delicate balance traditional banks must strike to attract the new generation of banking consumers while keeping longtime loyal customers happy.

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Neobanks Continue to Scoop Up Traditional Bank Profit Margins

Neobanks have been disrupting the traditional banking system for some time. Without the time and costs allocated to staffing and maintaining physical branch offices, these new online banks are freed up to be agile and pour their efforts into delivering top-notch customer service, using the latest in innovation to enhance the overall consumer experience.

Where are traditional banks missing the mark?

“Banks are challenged with understanding who their customers are and how they can serve this wide variety of customers that they have to deal with,” Kleinsorge said. “Traditional financial institutions are in business to make money, and they need to provide the services that their customers are going to use.”

He added: “What FIs around the world are grappling with: How do they provide this, maintain the stability, and offer the services their clients need? The next challenge is: How do they expand for the next generation of customers coming in? They’re challenged with this in a lot of different ways. They need to be able to adapt quickly.”

A banking customer’s lifecycle, Riley said, is the key to unlocking what a customer needs.

“People go through cycles,” Riley said. “You have different needs as you go through financing. That’s why it’s important to capture this segment because it’s like your first date. You always remember it. And you remember that first relationship you have with a bank. And people go through this lifecycle, they start coming out with college loans, which was not something that was prevalent a few decades ago to the extent that it is now.”