HDFC Bank Plans Overhauled Mobile App For Enhanced Customer Experience & Security
HDFC Bank is gearing up to launch a fully overhauled mobile banking application within the next four months, aiming to significantly enhance both customer experience and security. Parag Rao, the Group Head of Payments, Consumer Finance and Liabilities at HDFC Bank, revealed that the bank is currently in the beta stage of development, with the goal of transforming the backend engineering construct to create entirely new-age digital platforms.
Presently, the bank's mobile application serves more than 32 million customers. The ongoing revamp involves separating the deep linkages between the mobile app and net banking website from the backend systems. This strategic move is expected to enhance resilience, ensuring that mobile banking services continue seamlessly even in the event of outages in specific systems.
In addition to these structural changes, HDFC Bank is focusing on bolstering the security infrastructure of both the mobile app and net banking channels. Given the rise in fraud incidents and the decreasing turnaround time for such activities, the bank is introducing multiple security features. These include two-factor authentication and Face2Face IDs, making it more challenging for fraudulent activities like cloning the bank's app, phishing and vishing.
HDFC Bank faced restrictions from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in December 2020, preventing it from issuing new cards and launching new digital initiatives due to technological outages. The regulatory restrictions were lifted after a 15-month period during which the bank rectified its internal systems.
The overhauled mobile app is expected to debut with 185-190 features, with plans to increase the count to 245-250 within the next 12 months. HDFC Bank is also exploring the integration and linkage of the backend systems of various bank entities and apps within the HDFC Bank mobile app. For instance, customers could access PayZapp through HDFC Bank seamlessly.
Moreover, the revamped mobile banking app will not only serve as a customer-servicing app but also allow the acquisition of non-bank customers. Customers will be able to apply for various products with just one touch, even without registering with the bank initially.
HDFC Bank is also actively engaging with fintech partners to reimagine how customers consume products, improve user journeys and build resilient digital platforms. Partnerships with fintechs cover areas such as the PayZapp app, Mintoak, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), local language models, machine learning and the development of bots and voice language tools.
By leveraging fintech collaborations for cloud services and data lake optimization, HDFC Bank aims to handle its large dataset efficiently. This strategy is expected to facilitate instant credit underwriting and the creation of effective marketing models. Additionally, HDFC Bank is exploring fintech partnerships for specific initiatives, such as its co-branded credit card collaboration with Swiggy, which has garnered significant adoption.
