Industry Spotlight: Financial Services | Digital Consumer Trends 2021

There is no doubt that technological capabilities and innovation will be vital to improving customer experiences in financial services. However, banks and insurers need to invest in technology and talent to remain competitive.

Both banks and insurers need to learn from ways of working during the pandemic and be innovative and adaptable in their use of technology and talent in facing their short-term challenges. In the longer term, digital transformation and an innovative culture will be decisive for staying competitive.

Five key stats from the financial services

The mobile phone is the most popular device for checking bank balances (64%), twice as much as laptops and desktops combined (25%).
Nine in ten (90%) Scandinavian consumers have used a mobile phone to transfer money to someone else in their country.
The mobile phone has become an essential tool for managing investments (46%) and insurance policies (59%).
More than half of 18- to 34-year olds in Scandinavia have bought or sold shares using their mobile phone.
Transferring money to an individual in a different country is not so widely used in Scandinavia (29%). However, it is more common in Norway (39%) than in Denmark (25%) and Sweden (26%).

Deloitte view

The Scandinavian financial services industry has remained in good shape throughout the pandemic, although there have been changes in customer behaviour – in many ways, the future showed up early.

“The main challenge of digital transformation is not digital. Unfortunately, the cultural shift needed to accelerate the transition is still an underinvested area across the industry.”

Sverre Danielsen, Financial Services Lead Nordics

Technological capabilities have become a ‘must-have’

The pre-pandemic trends have continued. Meeting customer needs is key − searching for the optimal value proposition mix of digital and human interactions. Technological capabilities and innovation will undoubtedly be vital for improving the customer experience. The providers who made early investments in technological and innovation capabilities lead the way.

The banking sector is preparing for future competition from major providers of international payment solutions, as well as from Amazon, and strategic positioning has intensified. One example is Vipps, Danske Bank and Pivo joining forces and creating a united user platform for their services.