Sia Consulting has published its annual report on the digital maturity of banking apps worldwide. In it--the sixth edition--the apps of 150 banks in 19 countries are under the microscope. “From the inside,” explains Anthony Wolf, head of financial services at the consultancy firm: “that’s what makes our work so special: we take the banks for which we have client access. On a voluntary basis, our consultants answer a questionnaire about the bank of which they are a client.”

The method

Each year, the questionnaire is updated to reflect technological and market developments. “Certain aspects such as the ability to transfer money--which has become a basic feature--now take a backseat, with less weight in the overall rating,” says Wolf. “And new criteria are added. This year, these include the presence of personal finance management functionalities, as well as ESG-related capabilities such as measuring the carbon footprint of investments.”

As far as the rating is concerned, 50% of the score is linked to the functionalities present--or not--and their implementation. These functionalities cover the entire spectrum of banking activity: payments, investments, financial management, credit, insurance and customer support and beyond. On the rise are services that go beyond banking, such as mobility management, cash back services, loyalty programmes or tax assistance. Another 30% of the score comes from user experience, which considers the design of the app, the responsiveness of the pages and readability. The final 20% comes from the rating of the apps in their respective stores. “This is a way for us to take account of customer feedback. In fact, there is a correlation between customer satisfaction as expressed on the stores and the results of our study,” says Wolf.

The winners

This year, Intesa Sanpaolo came out on top with a score of 81% (up from second place in 2022 with 82.2%). In second place was Bank of America (81%), followed by KBC (79%), Belfius (77%) and Revolut Metal (76%).

Looking more closely at the results, it seems that the advantage of non-banks over traditional banks is waning. Revolut Metal--first place last year--has fallen four places in twelve months. What counts now is less being a bank born in the digital age and more, says Wolf, if the bank “is looking to the future and anticipating competition, particularly from the Gafams [Google, Apple, Meta, Amazon and Microsoft; editor’s note], who are aiming to carve out a place for themselves in the banking world, which they are bound to do at some point.”

He adds: “When these new banks arrived on the market, they had a highly innovative offering that shook up the European banks, which since have drawn inspiration from these new players and adapted their offerings.”

Another observation made by Wolf is that European banks, which have dominated since the study began seven years ago, are losing their lead over the rest of the world. This year, for the first time, non-European banks have cracked the top ten. “There is a catch-up effect. I wouldn’t be surprised to see banks from Asia and the Middle East on the podium in three or four years.”

Spuerkeess is the local leader

And in Luxembourg?

Once again this year, the Spuerkeess (BCEE) beat out its country competition with a score of 68%, followed by Bil (56%), BGL BNP Paribas (50%), ING Luxembourg (43%) and newcomer-to-the-survey Post (39%).

The ranking notes four categories of banks: the digital leaders (the top 10% of banks), followed by the digital challengers (the next 30%), followers (the next 30%) and latecomers (the lowest 30%). In 2022, BCEE came close to joining the leaders, and despite losing ground in 2023 (falling from 18th to 27th) will remain a challenger. Bil made the followers list at 84th, and the remaining three are latecomers: BNP Paribas at 105th, ING Luxembourg at 136th and the Post at 142nd.

“BCEE is being rewarded mainly for the features it offers. In terms of user experience, however, it’s below the Luxembourg average,” explains Wolf. For him, the bank performs particularly well on the investment side, in the three major traditional asset classes of equities, bonds and funds.

“Bil has a high level of customer satisfaction despite the fact that it offers fairly limited functionality. The basics are good, the essential services are offered, but it could evolve towards something a little more powerful. As we know, Bil has been somewhat embroiled in major transformation projects over the last few years. We can see that, since last year, these projects are behind them and they can invest a little more in the development of their digital services. And you can feel it.”

“And BGL [BNP Paribas] has more or less remained at the same level as ING Luxembourg,” he adds.

Regarding ING Luxembourg, it’s worth noting that apps of its “sister” banks are doing much better in the ranking: ING Belgium is in 59th place (60%) and ING Netherlands 86th (56%). The situation is somewhat similar for BGL BNP Paribas, whose French app is 33rd overall (67%) and its “Fortis” app 60th (60%).

Overall, Luxembourg players are weak in the “Beyond Banking” category and insurance solutions specifically. “Not a single player in Luxembourg today offers an insurance solution on their app,” Wolf points out.

This article in Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.