By Tom King
Banks and financial services companies could wipe as much as 22 percent from their operating expenses by adopting artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. This is the finding of «Machine Intelligence and Augmented Finance», a report compiled by financial research firm Autonomous.
With smartphones underpinning the finance industry’s tech push, Asia will likely see exponential growth in AI-based solutions. Most of the savings are predicted to benefit customer facing operations.
While North America has the highest deal count and invests the most capital, Asia is gaining incremental share, according to the report.
AI’s Growing Influence
However, with regulation becoming more complex and processes moving towards real-time, AI in oversight, risk-management and know your customer (KYC) systems in the middle office are proving valuable as well.
In the front office, the most promising applications focus on integrating financial data and account actions with software that can hold conversations with clients as well as support staff.
Asset Management and Regulation
Bank customers across Asia have been quick to embrace artificial intelligence. U.S. banking giant Citi was the latest to roll out a natural language chatbot. While Singaporean lender OCBC was the first bankto establish a dedicated artificial intelligence unit in the city-state.
The use of artificial intelligence in Asian financial services is not limited to consumer banking however.
Asset manager Schroders recently launched a beta version of Schroders GO, an online chatbot operating through Facebook messenger.
Singapore’s financial regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, also wants to bolster the adoption of artificial intelligence in the country’s financial services sector.
