The financial industry is one of the most dynamically growing market segments. Today, financial services are already quick, cheap, and convenient. We pay with our smartphones and smartwatches (both online and offline) and send money halfway around the world within seconds. And marketing tries to keep up with this crazy pace and encourage customers to use these new solutions and technologies. And that's what we're going to talk about today. What can we expect in the near future regarding financial services and how they are promoted? Let's find out!

Before we start, let's say a few words about how the banking-slash-financial industry looks today. A digital bank account is just a start. Today, every decent bank and the financial institution offers a fully-fledged mobile app enabling users to check their account (or create a new one), send money, buy stock, and pay for the products purchased online. Instant money transfers enable customers to pay immediately for the products they've just purchased. And if you don’t have money, that’s no problem – just use the BNPL service and pay later.

There are mobile and web apps that you can use to:

• Store and save money
• Buy and sell stock
• Track your home budget
• Exchange money (today, it’s a breeze to keep your savings in USD even if you live in a country where this currency is not popular)

Someone might say that we already have it all! You can’t reinvent the wheel, right? Perhaps, but this doesn’t mean that financial marketing can rest on its laurels. There is a constant flow of new technologies, new solutions, new doubts, and new trends that the marketing department has to tackle. Let’s have a look at some of them.

The financial sector has to become eco

Ecology and sustainability are two elements that will shape the financial world in the coming years, and marketing must reflect that trend. The fact is, the majority of consumers are not ready to take some serious steps to lower their impact on the environment. But they want to feel like they do eco-friendly things. This can be seen in the banking sector as well.

In late 2021, Visa introduced something called Visa Eco Benefits – a package of sustainability-focused benefits comprising [Visa]:

• Carbon footprint calculator (allowing users to track the carbon footprint of their spending)
• Carbon offsets: The ability of cardholders to offset their greenhouse gas emissions impacts
• Sustainable debit/credit cards (e.g., made of recycled plastic)

• Donations to environmental organizations

• Rewards for sustainable behaviors

Moreover, cardless and cashless payment solutions are more and more popular. Today, you don’t even need a physical banking card – you can have a virtual one on your phone. Such a solution is not just eco-friendly but also secure. See how that works in one of the most popular digital wallets – Google Pay:

What can we expect in the future when it comes to eco-friendliness? First off, all major banks and card operators will encourage customers to switch to virtual debit/credit cards. Secondly, we can expect a surge in rewards and bonus points for eco-friendly behaviors (just like Visa already does). And thirdly, without a doubt, there will be more cashless and cardless payment solutions so that the banking sector can limit its adverse influence on the environment.

Increased security

That’s another trend that has already started. Back in 2015, there was introduced a PSD2 directive across European Union and European Economic Area. This directive introduces strong security requirements for electronic payments and for the protection of consumers' financial data. The goal is to boost consumer confidence when buying products online. We can expect that in the near future, the whole banking/financial sector will be focused on the security of online payments to encourage customers to spend more money online.

All banks, financial institutions, and payment agents will emphasize that their products and services are 100% secure and resistant to online fraud.

NEW (SECURE) PAYMENT METHODS

Hand in hand with the need to increase the security of online payments go new payment methods. One of the most interesting examples is biometric payments. The iris of the eye or a fingerprint are features of the human body that cannot be faked or duplicated. Therefore, there is no risk that someone will use your fingerprint to authorize a transaction that you don’t know about. On the other hand, with biometrics, security is also enhanced because you don't have to remember passwords or PINs. Even the aforementioned EU directive indicates biometrics as one of the possible ways to implement SCA – strong customer authentication.

Biometrics is used even today in debit/credit cards. For example, MasterCard offers cards with embedded sensors that are powered by the chip. They authenticate the user’s identity through a fingerprint:

It is highly likely that in the near future, we will see even more new payment options, and marketing departments will have their hands full when it comes to explaining these new payment methods and their features.

Value-added services (VAS) are the future

Today, banks are not all about storing and sending your money. They offer a whole range of other so-called value-added services that are not strictly related to their core scope of operation. These VAS usually revolve around discounts, CSR activities, and support in the accomplishment of customers' everyday tasks. In other words – banks improve our daily life and make it easier.

Let’s have a look at some examples:

REVOLUT

This fintech started as a multicurrency payment option – very convenient when traveling abroad. Today, Revolut is a whole hub helping you with everything related to money. For example, through this app, you can:

• Analyze your home budget
• Participate in loyalty and cashback programs
• Organize and manage all your subscriptions (e.g., Netflix, Dropbox, Spotify, etc.) in one place
• Send personalized cash gifts or gift cards

Image source: Revolut

BREX

This American fintech for startups and other companies helps you manage all the finances of your business. With Brex, you get access to:

• Financial modeling
• Expense tracking
• Spend management
• Paying bills and invoices

Plus, it comes with a whole range of integrations and rewards that you can use to buy other services, invest, or spend on travels around the world.

Image source: Brex

Value-added services help both individual and business users in their everyday life. They help you manage your finances and spending and track your budget. Today, the financial industry is not just one of many components of your life – it gradually becomes the center of everything you do. We can expect that in the near future, VAS will become a major trend, and banks and fintechs will have a much broader offer for their users.

To sum up, the future of the banking and financial industry is nothing but exciting. These new technologies and solutions constitute a tremendous potential for all skilled marketers. After all, it all comes down to the way you present your new offer to your customers, right?

And if you’re looking for non-standard ways of informing your target audience about new products, services, or features – give web push a try. Take a look at our wide list of use cases and see for yourself how versatile and effective push notifications can be! And when you do, go ahead and register your account (available in five languages)!