A Quick Glance at EASE Reforms
EASE (Enhanced Access and Service Excellence) reforms were jointly launched in 2018 by the Indian government and public sector banks (PSBs) with an aim to institutionalize transparent and smart banking. With the help of the reforms, the government aims to modernize Indian banks and enhance their performance across multiple dimensions.
EASE 4.0 Reforms to Boost Digital Banking!
Recently, the government has unveiled EASE 4.0 reforms with an agenda to facilitate digital, simplified, and 24×7 banking by leveraging cutting-edge technologies and data analytics. EASE 4.0 reforms have been launched to ensure tech-enabled banking while enhancing the resiliency of infrastructure and streamlining internal processes at PSBs. It primarily aims at four key objectives:
- Smart Lending: Digitizing the end-to-end lending process and customer journeys by adopting technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, cloud-native deployment, and more. Further, it aims at an increased adoption of smart data analytics to provide customized offerings
- 24×7 Banking Services: Providing an uninterrupted banking experience with multi-channel access to banking services by automating high-volume internal workflows and migrating to cloud-based solutions
- Collaboration with Financial Ecosystem: Improving doorstep banking facilities and digital payments in semi-urban and remote areas through mobile initiation and collaboration with non-banking financial companies
- Data-enabled Agricultural Finance: Automating agricultural loan processing and sanctioning by leveraging digital records
A Low Code-based Digital Transformation Platform Can Make It Easy!
A low code-based digital transformation platform backed with the right set of technologies enables:
- Smart Digital Banking:
- Initiate retail and MSME loans through mobile applications, self-service portals, with OTP-based authentication, and online KYC, with 24×7 access
- Online customer verification and risk assessment by leveraging account aggregator/fintech services for KYC verification, income assessment, due diligence, and others
- Predictive Analytics:
- Use AI-based predictive analytics to assist customer acquisition, predict customer’s interest to cross-sell products, and enable pre-approved credit offerings from data
- Utilize data analytics for customer risk profiling
- Identify issues in a loan lifecycle by mapping customer behavioral trends and minimizing their impact through intelligent decision-making
- Predict customer’s tendency to make timely payments with risk classification
- Seamless Integration:
- Leverage out-of-the-box integration adaptors to integrate with core banking and legacy applications for seamless data exchange and capture
- Partner with fintech companies and e-commerce websites to help automate the end-to-end loan lifecycle through digital KYC, bureau checks, bank statement analysis, and instant approval via digital signatures
- End-to-end Automation and Contactless Banking:
- Automate the entire back-office operations
- Enable customers to access banking services anytime, anywhere through digital channels like portals and mobile apps
- Enable contactless banking through digital/video KYC, online approvals, customer consent on legal documents through digital signatures, electronic mandate setup, online account verification, and more
- Faster Go-to-market:
- Reduce go-live duration by leveraging low code platform and readily available product accelerators, tailor-made for catering to diverse needs of different business lines such as customer onboarding, lending, payments, and more
To Conclude
A low code and cloud-based digital transformation platform can help banks comply with EASE reforms. The platform can facilitate round-the-clock digital banking, seamless integration with core banking and third-party systems, enhanced operational efficiency, and end-to-end automation of customer journey.
(The author Mr.Kaushal Verma, Head of Banking Practice, Newgen Software and the views expressed in this article are his own)
