Banks and savings banks in Peru: What do Peruvians think about their mobile applications?

According to him Brand Study 2023, which for the Banking sector reflects the perception of a total of 620 respondents between the ages of 18 and 65 in Lima, Callao and the provinces, there are 75% of users who would be greatly affected by the disappearance of banks’ digital channels. The figure is higher compared to what was registered in 2022 (71%).

Along the same lines, Jorge Rubiños, commercial manager of Arellano Consultoría, explains that satisfaction with digital channels improves significantly. “Satisfaction with the application in 2022 was 76% and this year it has gone to 80%. Internally, those who are ‘fully satisfied’ rose from 35% to 44% in one year. This speaks to us of a great advance”add.

Arellano’s study positions, within the Banking sector, BCP in first place among the brands that are in the ‘top of mind’ of those surveyed. It is also the bank in which users carry out the most operations.

Anna Lenka Jáuregui, Marketing and Customer Experience Manager at BCP, explains that to date the financial institution’s mobile application represents 32% of the bank’s total monetary and non-monetary transactions. “It is used by 5.6 million unique customers. Only in 2022 we launched more than 30 functionalities and we focused a lot on enhancing the stability of our operations”asserts.

BBVA also shares the top positions on the list. “During 2022 we implemented financial health tools in our app, consolidating more than 200 features that allow users to organize their finances”comments Daniela Vinatea, assistant manager of marketing for BBVA in Peru.

The bank has also made its application accessible to people with visual disabilities. Miguel Ángel Real, Head of Retail Channels at BBVA in Peru, says that they have become the first bank in the BBVA Group to have this functionality. “They will be able to carry out operations such as registering, checking balances and making transfers”add.

Interbank, which shares the shortlist among the most remembered brands in the sector, to date has 95% of its operations through digital channels and more than 71% of its clients are digital.

“We seek to accompany our clients in all the interactions they have with the bank, from when they purchase a new product, when they use digital channels and give them self-service tools, ensuring full control of their products”says Tiago Tenreiro, Interbank’s Brand and Communication Manager.

In the case of Savings Banks and finance companies, for which the survey includes a total of 580 surveys, Caja Huancayo leads the ranking. Its Business Manager, Ramiro Arana, explains that this month they would be finalizing the process so that their ‘app’ allows the disbursement of credits. “We are finishing the work with a Mexican group for the development of the application. Thus, we will totally improve the service and the perception of customers. It is what we believe can boost user satisfaction”comment.

The figures reveal a great improvement in this: customers “totally satisfied” with the applications in municipal banks went from 29% in 2022 to 43% this year. However, there are still gaps to be conquered: unlike banks, the respondents who would be affected by the disappearance of digital channels amount to 50%.

For Caja Arequipa, an institution that shares the first places in brand positioning, the microfinance sector faces the problem of connectivity: not all of its potential clients have Internet access.

“There are areas where there is still a lack of Internet infrastructure to enjoy the benefits that the savings banks offer. We must work with the State so that, at least, we improve the speed of the Internet. That limits our ability to improve perception”questions Wilber Dongo, central business manager of the aforementioned box.

The savings bank, which in the last two months has attracted 85,000 new clients, last week reached S/8,000 million in credits.

Caja Piura, which is located in the first places of preference among users, will also bet on working its digital attention. “We are determined to boost the use of our digital products and continue promoting financial education among our customers. To achieve this, we have embarked on a process of continuous improvement, increasing the transactional options in our digital service channels”says Marianella Albirena, head of Marketing of the aforementioned box, which has 43% of its clients in five regions of the north of the country.