Almudena Román at ESADE: "ING is already a fully mobile bank"
ING Direct España’s General Manager, Almudena Román, spoke at the latest session of Matins ESADE. The event was sponsored by EY (formerly Ernst & Young), and with the collaboration of La Vanguardia newspaper. She stressed that “ING is already a fully mobile bank and noted that most of the contacts came through mobile devices. Román said that the company was a pioneer in digital banking in Spain and noted that "touch-screens create a win-win situation for the bank and its customers because they foster better interaction between both parties. Referring to ING’s apps, she added that “We learn from other industries, such as the video game sector".
“We were brought up in the Industrial Age, in which it was believed that the service or product was the important thing. Nowadays though, it is interaction that really makes the difference", She went on to say for this meant "simplifying things" and "giving freedom to customers" — both points the company is working on.
No plans to raise bank charges
Asked about recent statements by the President of the Spanish Banking Association (AEB) and on whether ING intended to raise bank charges, Román said "We have no plans to raise charges because we focus on creating value".
Delving into the value-creation strategy, she gave the example of how the bank tackled Foreign Exchange services to cater to its customers' needs. “Despite being a bank, ING had never had a Foreign Exchange (FX) service — even though it got 1,500 FX requests a month. To tap this latent demand, the bank set up a business development team to carry out research. The outcome was an agreement with Global Exchange, through which ING could offer greater service to its customers. For instance, using Global Exchange meant that customers could choose between home delivery of currency or picking FX up at the airport. Furthermore, Global Exchange repurchased whatever FX the client had left over from the trip, applying the same rate it had been bought at. This, said Román, was a different way of looking at things and created value for customers.
Self-generated growth
Román noted “The growth of ING Direct in España since its launch 17 years ago has been wholly self-generated, with new customers walking into branches of their own volition. This, she said, is what set ING apart from the rest of the pack.. “We do our utmost to deliver annual growth by some 200,000 customers a year in a sector in which less than 2% of clients change bank in the same period, she explained.
At today’s session of ESADE Matins, ING Direct España’s General Manager was asked how the bank got round the handicap of having no cash dispenser (ATM) network of its own. Román’s answer was: "We rent the network from other banks and at the moment, ING customers can use 9 out of 10 cash dispensers. Some of them are free, others are free for withdrawals of €90 and up, and yet others for €200 and up.
She also referred to ING’s lean staff structure and the bank’s extensive use of outsourcing. She noted that outsourced workers have the same strong commitment to servicing the bank’s clients, adding that "ING Direct España is very efficient when it comes to managing its costs".
