Mobile now preferred channel for Citi APAC clients

Citi has announced that mobile banking has become the preferred channel for its consumer clients in Asia Pacific.

The bank said that during 2017 mobile banking overtook other digital channels to become the preferred channel used by Citi’s Asia Pacific clients. Mobile use at Citi has surged by 48% in the last 12 months, making it the fastest growing digital channel at Citi.

Digital is also growing rapidly as a source of new business at Citi. Digital acquisition in Citi’s Credit Cards and Loans business grew 57% year-on-year, and digital lending now accounts for 40% of total consumer loans fulfilled by Citi in the region.

This growth has been underpinned by Citi’s digital investments and growth in partnerships on leading digital ecosystems.

“At Citi our goal is to deliver remarkable banking experiences to our clients wherever they are. We have been transforming our business to be simpler, faster, scalable and digital. The growth we are seeing in mobile and digital underlines the progress we are making in being increasingly relevant where are clients need us to be,” Citi said head of global consumer banking Asia Pacific and EMEA Anand Selva said

Citi has digital credit card partnerships with leading players in the region including Amazon, Grab, Lazada, Expedia, and Airbnb. Citi also recently partnered with Facebook to launch its first banking chatbot on the Facebook Messenger platform in Singapore. Giving customers real-time information on their accounts, transaction details and rewards points balances, Citi’s chatbot will be rolled out across the region over the next few months.

The bank is already active in a number of leading social messaging platforms in Asia Pacific including WeChat in China and LINE in Thailand. Citi also recently reached a major milestone with three million customers having registered to use its voice biometric authentication.

Across the region, Citi’s digital banking channels and servicing capabilities continue to see strong growth in customer engagement.

The Asia Pacific Global Consumer Bank’s focus on transforming its business continues to yield positive results. For the third quarter of 2017, the business reported a 5% increase in revenue year-on-year to $1.87 billion, representing its fifth consecutive quarter of revenue growth in the region and making it the fastest growing consumer business for Citi globally.

A total of 17 out of Citi’s 19 Consumer Banking markets globally are now located in the Asia Pacific and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regions.