Reimagining Onboarding Report

Reimagining
onboarding
Insights into the online onboarding
experiences of Dutch banks and challengers
January 2021
Reimagining
onboarding
Insights into the online onboarding
experiences at Dutch banks and
challengers
A message from EY Consulting

Seamless, modern, and secure customer onboarding is a critical experience for
banks to get right. This has recently become an even greater area of focus, with the
introduction of stricter regulations, innovative technologies, challengers, and the
closure of physical bank branches. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this
trend and has led to significant changes in how people bank, bringing new customer
groups online who were previously reliant on brick-and-mortar banking.
The Incumbent banks must adapt to an online-only future, while

banking continuing to serve a wide range of customer groups. Challengers
must also find ways to remain cost-effective and agile as they expand
industry is and grow. Both incumbents and challengers must adopt to the
facing changing environment and thoughtfully design their futures.
disruption
Tomorrow’s leading banks will need to reimagine and redesign their onboarding
experience in order to mitigate fraud and become dramatically more customer-
centric. Top performers will opportunistically stay ahead of the curve by leveraging
innovative technologies and personalized experiences to capture customer loyalty
and identify wicked activity early.
Page 2 | Reimagining the customer onboarding experience

We welcome the opportunity to discuss your
perspective on these issues as well as your company’s
own experiences. About us
EY Financial Services
operates one of the
largest financial
services advisory
practices globally. As
regulatory,
technology, and
Menno Bonninga Bram van Sunder customer leaders, we
Financial Services Technology Financial Crime and challenge the current
Consulting Leader, Consulting Leader, state to protect the
EY Advisory Netherlands LLP EY Advisory Netherlands LLP
customer and enable
innovation
opportunities.
Paul van der Waaij Tony de Bos

Financial Services Technology EY Global & EMEIA Data
Transformation Leader, Protection & Privacy Leader,
EY Advisory Netherlands LLP EY Advisory Netherlands LLP
Zeynep Deldag Reinier Plantinga

Financial Services Assurance Financial Services, Banking
Banking and Capital Markets Leader,
Leader, EMEIA FSO, EY Advisory Netherlands LLP
EY Advisory Netherlands LLP

Contents
Chapter Page
01 Executive summary 5
02 Context, background, and framework 9
03 Key findings 14
04 Recommendations 89
05 Future trends 96
06 Contact us 99

01
Executive Summary
Personalized, digital, and fast
customer onboarding is important
for banks to facilitate growth
Seamless, modern, and secure customer Dutch customers using online

onboarding is a critical experience for banks banking, as a percentage1
to get right. This has recently become an even
greater area of focus, with the introduction of
stricter regulations, innovative technologies,
97%
challengers, and the closure of physical bank
branches. The COVID-19 pandemic has
accelerated this trend and has led to
significant changes in how people bank,
bringing new customer groups online who
were previously reliant on brick-and-mortar
banking.
We have investigated online onboarding

Banks active in the current
experiences for Dutch retail customers with account market in the
four incumbent banks and four challengers to Netherlands
identify problems and opportunities and Source: EY research (September 2020)
redesign the experience.
The onboarding experiences have been

considered from a range of different
24
perspectives, including online usability,
compliance and security, innovation and
guidance, and support. We have also
dedicated a separate section to customers
from a non-Dutch background (expats) as
these represent an under-served customer
segment.
We have made a series of recommendations Banks have not yet brought

aimed at incumbents and challengers which their onboarding online
we hope you find useful. We have also taken Source: EY research (September 2020)
these lessons on board and reimagined and
redesigned the onboarding experience.
29%
1. Trustly, The state of online banking, 2017 <http://thestateofonlinebanking.com/>

Incumbents are lagging behind
challengers in customer-centricity
It is encouraging that all However, there are also some

organizations in the scope of this improvements to be made for challengers,
especially relating to making their
research have invested in creating a onboarding experience more accessible.
digital onboarding journey.
Finally, we encourage both incumbents and
We have also seen promising improvements challengers to take a further look at the
from many banks in the use of simple, needs of the expat customer segment. Only
customer-centric language and most of one incumbent received a positive score in
them have managed to create relatively this area.
short onboarding journeys. That said, there
are still some improvements to be made in
this field.
Incumbents can and should take inspiration

from their challenger counterparts who are
leading in areas such as simplicity,
contextual direction, and user experience,
which really allows them to stand out from
the crowd.
Table 1 – Heatmap of the onboarding findings for challengers and incumbents 1
A. Online B. Compliance C. Innovation D. Direction & E. The expat F. Total

Usability and Security customization perspective
Challenger 1
Challenger 2
Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Managed & Managed &

Initial Defined Optimized
repeatable capable
1. It should be noted that the onboarding journeys of challengers and incumbents have been considered from the perspective of
the customer only. No internal business or technical processes have been assessed. The assessment is intended to serve as a
sounding board for banks with illustrative examples only.
Challengers and incumbents alike
can still learn and improve
Online usability
A
► Incumbents should leverage techniques
deployed by challengers to optimize their
landing pages by showing value to clients and
include a clear call to action.
► Both incumbents and challengers can be
more technology-inclusive by making the
experience more accessible.
Compliance and security
B
► Both incumbents and challengers can do
more to provide assurance through
contextual messaging, seeking approval and
providing value-added explanations.
► Additional technical features can be
leveraged for security and a seamless
experience (for example, geolocation).
Innovation
C
► It is exciting to see both incumbents and
challengers embrace the opportunities of
digital and technology, ranging from the
uptake in third party identification software
to reimagining the flow of the journey.
► Further gains can be made by both in UX/UI
and adding gamification elements.
Direction & customization
D
► While both incumbents and challengers have
focused on modernizing their language, there
isn’t sufficient re-use of data, personalization
and modern support options readily available
during the onboarding experience.
► All incumbents and one challenger should
also simplify their terms and conditions.

02
Context,
background, and
framework
Introduction
Customer onboarding has long been Context

a critical topic for financial services Looking ahead, we see these trends accelerating as
the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the transition
organizations. The onboarding from physical branches to an online-only environment.
journey is one of the first Two of the four banks included in this research have
publicly confirmed they will permanently close up to
experiences customers will have with one in four branches in the Netherlands over the next
your organization. year. Another bank has reported an increase from
physical to digital of 35 percent to 60 percent in
2020. This rapid change in service model requires a
It represents a “moment of truth” for a positive critical examination of the onboarding journey to
customer experience and can shape loyalty for years ensure all customer types are adequately being served
to come. The customer onboarding journey has been without needing to rely on branches. Banks who fail to
subject to a great deal of change, driven by a shift do so may lose prospective customers to more
from paper to digital, changing regulations, and the digitally-enabled banks.
rise of challenger banks unconstrained by legacy
systems. In the Netherlands, there has also been a
rising demand banking services from expats who
Our approach
prefer onboarding environments tailored to their We have investigated online onboarding experiences
specific context. for retail customers with four incumbent banks and
four challengers who are active in the Netherlands to
identify problems and opportunities. The customer
onboarding journey for financial services organizations
is influenced by a wide range of different perspectives.
As such, we have investigated this from a range of
different factors, including the customer experience,
technology, innovation, communication and language,
and compliance and security.

Reading guide for ‘key findings’
We have organized key findings in a consistent manner, providing a description, the

challenges and best practices, a maturity assessment, observations from challengers and
incumbents, and EY insights.
1 Research criteria
2 Description of criteria, challenges,

and best practices
3
Heatmap maturity rating
per organization
Observations from
challengers 4
Observations from
incumbents 5
EY Insights
6
Research criteria
In order to provide a comprehensive and fact-based perspective, we have investigated the

onboarding journey using a range of different criteria. These criteria were established through
EY knowledge in customer experience, cybersecurity, financial crime, and AML and CDD law.
We have also dedicated a separate section to customers from a non-Dutch background
(expats), as these represent an under-served customer segment a significant growth
opportunity for banks.
A. ONLINE
USABILITY Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
AND SECURITY Email and Pin Privacy
phone
Identification Username Location
and verification
C. INNOVATION
Dashboard Measure Technology
Milestones Card Speed UX / UI

reader
D. DIRECTION &
CUSTOMIZATION Guidance Customer friendly
language
Support Pre-filled Personalization
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT
Language BSN
Findability Verification

Online onboarding for retail Banking
customers in the Netherlands
Online banking is becoming the norm in the Netherlands with an estimated 97% of retail
customers using online banking services. 1 At the time of writing this article, there are over 24
banks active in the Netherlands providing current account banking services to retail
customers. Out of these banks, 29% have not yet created an online onboarding experience.
These banks still rely on physical onboarding, which occurs in the bank’s branch or include
post or email onboarding options. This research has focused on two distinct types of banks,
incumbent or traditional banks and challengers.
Incumbent banks
1 ►
►
Incumbent banks are traditionally brick-and-mortar banks, who
build their services around traditional financial products and
typically rely on brand name and customer loyalty to entice new
customers.
Since the financial services industry has a long history in the
Netherlands, many of the incumbent banks have been active in
some manner for over a hundred years.
► The incumbent banks in the Netherlands hold the largest market
share over retail and business banking and the larger banks also
have a significant hold in the global market.
► Incumbent banks often consider having a wealth of customer data
as part of their competitive advantage, however with the Open
Banking Directive this advantage is lessened.
► The research includes three large incumbent banks as well as one
smaller incumbent bank.
Challengers
2
► Generally FinTech companies utilizing technology to offer
streamlined banking services, mostly at a lower price than
incumbent banks.
► Using disruptive technologies and taking advantage of data driven
insights are pivotal to being considered a “challenger bank”.
► Most challenger banks are 100% digital, with some also being
mobile-only banks.
► The market is also beginning to see more challenger banks built
out of incumbent banks as part of innovation investment in order
to compete with the stand-alone challengers and also challengers
built out of Big Tech companies wanting to enter the FS market.
► This research includes three stand-alone challengers and one
incumbent-led challenger bank.
1. Trustly, The state of online banking, 2017 <http://thestateofonlinebanking.com/>

03
Key findings
A Online
usability
A. ONLINE
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
phone
and verification
C. INNOVATION

reader
D. DIRECTION &
language
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT
Language BSN
Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A. Online Usability
Summary scorecard
Online usability is comprised of the criteria that contribute to the ease of use of the
journeys. Decreasing onboarding friction by being findable, clearly showing the journey
ahead, and having smooth channel switches will encourage customers to complete the full
journey.
Challengers Incumbents
Criteria 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Findability 3 3 3 3 2 1 2 2
Orientation 2 2 3 2 2 1 2 1
Cross-channel
3 3 3 3 3 1 2 2
experience
Score definition Leading Lagging

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A1. Findability
Build it and they will come
Just because a prospect has entered The Fogg behavior model1 is a psychological
framework which suggests that successful conversion
the onboarding journey does not is driven by three important components which must
mean they will complete it. There are occur for people to act. These are the motivation, the
ability, and a prompt or trigger to act. If a task is not
a range of techniques that can be completed, at least one of these three components is
harnessed to increase the likelihood missing.
that a prospect will successfully If prospective customers (prospects) find your website,
complete the journey and become a you can assume they have at least some level
motivation to commence the onboarding journey. As
customer. such, a clear link should be provided, or call to action
(CTA) on the landing page to show the prospect where
to start onboarding and make the journey to start as
short and easy as possible. When designing a CTA,
take into account the curiosity gap2, the space
between what customers know and they want or need
to know. The curiosity gap can be used to trigger
prospects to find out more (by following the CTA), by
teasing prospects with a promise to give something
special at the end of the onboarding experience.
1. B. J. Fogg, "A behaviour model for persuasive design", Proceedings of the 4th international Conference on Persuasive Technology, pp. 40, 2009.
2. G. Loewenstein. “The psychology of curiosity: A review and Reinterpretation”, Psychological Bulleting, Vol 116, No I, 75-98, 1994.
Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A1. Findability
The results
Table 2 – Heatmap on findability for challengers and banks
Challengers are growth-oriented. They are focused on Challenger 1

welcoming new joiners and highlighting their features, Challenger 2
options, and benefits of their brand. Incumbents are Challenger 3
clearly more geared on serving existing customers, which Challenger 4
makes it harder for new customers to find the right place.
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Maturity level Initial Defined Optimized
► Challengers are growth-oriented. Their websites ► The websites of incumbents are clearly more
are geared for onboarding and significant real geared to serving existing customers. In order for
estate on their landing pages is dedicated to prospects to commence onboarding, they first
welcoming new joiners and highlighting the need to orient themselves by using the search
features, options, and benefits of their brand. function or click through several screens (up to
► As most challengers serve their customers five) in order to be directed to the onboarding
primarily through an app, it also makes sense for journey.
the websites to be more geared to prospects ► Incumbent 1 and 4 have more prominently
rather than existing customers. displayed the “search” function on their home
► Challengers are not product focused. They tend to pages to encourage prospects to find what they
guide prospects as soon as possible into the are looking for as opposed to clicking through the
onboarding process. Only once the prospect has menu.
completed more steps in the onboarding process, ► Incumbent 4 features their search function twice
and is more invested will prospects be asked to on the home screen while Incumbent 1 highlights
select a specific product. the various payment products for prospects to
select.
► Incumbent 3’s home screen has a dedicated link to
“open an account” and includes a prominent
search bar.
► Incumbents tend to be more product-focused,
where prospects have to select their chosen
product before they can commence onboarding.
► On the home page, Incumbent 2 shows their brand
statement, a news article on coronavirus, their
integrated report and a position paper. All this
information is quite internally driven. Prospects
have to use the search function or click through
several screens before they can start their
onboarding.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A1. Findability
EY Insights
► The onboarding journey starts in a search engine
and continues onto the website. Use website
analytics and customer testing to identify how
prospects reach the onboarding page. Is there any
way to simplify this? Have you accounted for all
potential search behavior?
► Show value to prospective customers to increase
motivation.
► Take another look at the landing page. Is this too
internally focused or does it assume previous
knowledge? To simplify the website, avoid any
jargon or an overload of information.
► Create a CTA which takes advantage of the
curiosity gap by teasing customers with a promise
of the value they get at the end of the onboarding
experience.
► One area customers can be concerned about is
losing their information or history with their
current bank, which might present a barrier for
customers to switch. Incumbents and challengers
could do more to emphasize how customers can
retain the banking information from their previous
bank by transferring their information.
► Only one challenger and one incumbent included
an account transfer service, offering prospective
customers to transfer automatic payments on their
behalf.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A2. Orientation
Where am I?
At this stage in the process, This first screen (whether in the app or in the desktop)
should provide engaging, short content in two areas:
prospects have successfully
commenced their onboarding 1) Setting expectations for the onboarding process
itself (e.g. what information will be required, the
journey. Banks should encourage duration of the process etc.).
prospects to become customers by 2) Showing value to prospects by including engaging
increasing a sense of ownership, content about the benefits and outcome to
customers by using their product through the
display the final results of app.
onboarding, and provide behavioral
guidance to reduce any confusion or Furthermore, prospects should be welcomed and
thanked for choosing your bank.
ambiguity.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A2. Orientation
Where am I?
The results
Table 3 – Heatmap on Orientation for challengers and incumbents
Challengers highlight their features and are more likely to Challenger 1

demonstrate value to the customer in a concise manner. Challenger 2
Incumbents tend to provide more information about the Challenger 3
process or internally focused information. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers postponement of the registration progress as long

as possible. When customers download the app
► Challengers are more focused on highlighting their they are thanked and immediately have access to
features. the app. This approach is generally deployed
► Challenger 3 provides leading practice here. outside of the financial services industry,
Prospects are welcomed, their features are unburdened by financial services regulations
highlighted (for example, the ability to request related to money laundering.
payments, set a savings goal, access ATMs, and be ► The advantage of this approach is that value can
supported via chat). These features are also be shown first by letting prospects explore the
visually supported by relevant imagery. Finally, app’s potential, before asking users to commit to
customers are informed via a few short statements the product with the registration. Certain features
about the process ahead and the documents cannot be accessed without onboarding and the
required. selection of a product, but users can still
► Challenger 4 makes bold statements about the understand the core value opportunities without
features of their product – e.g. 7x safer than high creating an account. The draw-back is that this
street banks and highlights additional features, approach is so unfamiliar for financial services
such as their budget goals. There is no mention of customers that it causes confusion.
the information needed before commencing the
onboarding journey. Prospects are also not
welcomed.
► Challenger 2 highlights their features in a single
sentence and highlights the speed to open the
account (in minutes). An indication of the process
ahead is provided by an overview of the progress
ahead. The prospect is not welcomed either.
► Challenger 1 takes a different approach
altogether. Their onboarding experience is an
example of gradual engagement, which involves

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A2. Orientation
Where am I?
Incumbents EY Insights
► Incumbent 2 is more internally focused. The ► Prospects should feel welcome and encouraged to
customer is not welcomed and in the first complete the onboarding process. Personalized,
confirmation email the customer is addressed as warm inviting language creates the feeling they
“beste aanvrager” or “dear requestor”. They do have already joined the bank.
not provide further information about information ► Describe app features (highlighting the benefit to
prospects need, or the benefits of their product. the customer) in a concise manner with one
► The orientation for Incumbent 3 is also more concept at a time to allow prospects to swipe
focused on the internal process, for example “do through the information quickly. Describing
you have a Dutch passport or ID” and “are you 18 features are a means to an end. During
years or older”. While answers to these questions orientation, people are interested to hear what end
provide a triage opportunity to ensure only eligible state the service delivers and how.
customers enter the onboarding journey, these ► It is useful to prepare prospects with some key
questions do not convey value to the customer. pieces of information they need to have at hand.
This prevents the prospect from having to find this
information mid-way through the journey.
► Don’t overload prospects with unnecessary
product or process focused information, but use
the opportunity to provide a first glimpse into your
unique selling proposition. This takes advantage of
Hick’s law, which states that increasing the number
of choices will increase the decision time
logarithmically.
► The endowment effect is the psychological effect
that people are more likely to keep something they
own than acquire that same thing if they do not
own it. This can be achieved early by already
giving a visitor a temporary bank account
dashboard to view or by showing a picture of a
debit card with their name already on it.
► Adding a short section on the (sustainability) vision
of the bank can help create meaning and
attachment with the customer.
► Gradual engagement isn’t an approach that will
work for every financial services product, but we
are enthusiastic about the ability to let users
interact with your app and understand its benefits
prior to making a commitment. To make things
easier for new customers, Challenger 1 could
maintain access to the features including the
instructional overlay, but guide users into the
onboarding flow to reduce confusion.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
A3. Cross-channel experience

Align channels, align experience
Channel switches are time The ideal experience should be consistent across
channels, seamless, available, and context specific.
consuming and can be confusing to The online onboarding experience brings along
customers. Many customers may security and fraud requirements (e.g. the use of a
camera to take pictures of identify documents and
select a particular channel over selfies), which are often easier fulfilled through an
another due to preference or app.
convenience. As a standard rule of However, prospects who do not have access to an

thumb, organizations should avoid appropriate smart phone or who would prefer to
onboard using their desktop should also be served. If
limiting tasks to specific channels as required, a transition between channels should include
this may result in customer attrition. a clear “call to action” and be as smooth as possible.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience

The results
Table 4 – Heatmap on Cross-channel experience for challengers and incumbents
All challengers require prospects to onboard via their app Challenger 1

and have created smart links to enable a seamless Challenger 2
transition. Most incumbents provide links, but some aren’t Challenger 3
optimized for a seamless customer experience. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► All challengers require prospects to onboard via ► Most incumbents provide links, but some aren’t
the app. optimized for a seamless customer experience.
► Challenger 1 and Challenger 4 provide their ► Incumbent 1 and 3 provide a link to the app store
services exclusively through the app, and do not This link can be seamless if customers are logged
provide access to their customer portal via the into their operating system’s account on their
website, but Challenger 2 and 3 do provide the desktop, but this will not be the case for all
ability for users to login and use the customer customers.
portal on a desktop. ► Incumbent 1 and 4 also provide a QR code with a
► All challengers require prospects to complete the link to the app store.
onboarding experience in the app and have clearly ► Incumbent 1 has a dedicated onboarding app
introduced a “call to action” to download the app which can be deleted after use.
using smart SMS links to enable seamlessness.
► Incumbent 4 only supports one operating system.
► Challenger 1, 3, and 4 invite prospects to share Prospects with a different operating system must
their telephone number so they can share a link to onboard via the branch.
the prospect’s mobile phone to download the app.
► Incumbent 2 is the only bank where prospects
► Challenger 2 enables prospects to “create an must onboard via the website. Prospects are not
account” on the website, after which prospects are able to onboard via the app (they are re-directed
channeled to the app to complete identification. As to the website).
this occurs mid-way through the onboarding
journey, the link contains personalized data that
has already been collected, thus advancing
seamlessness and consistency across channels.
The message in the SMS includes the prospect’s
name. Once the app is downloaded, the customer’s
login details are pre-filled, merely requiring a
previously completed password to open the app.

Orientation
Findability Cross-
channel
experience

EY Insights
► A smart channel strategy should be harnessed to
ensure prospects have an integrated customer
experience. It warrants to take a look at the sort of
devices being used by your prospects. Do the
technical requirements allow for a range of
channels which are used by customers? Which
channels will be used to serve the customer going
forward?
► Another key consideration when designing the
cross channel experience for onboarding should be
to include the broader service model. If the service
offering is provided entirely through an app
(Challenger 1 and 4), it makes sense to also limit
the onboarding experience to the app. However, if
services are also provided through a desktop
(Challenger 2 and 3 and all incumbents), you are
potentially limiting customers who prefer to use a
desktop.
► Where channel shifts are required, these should
involve a clear “call to action” and be as seamless
as possible. Identify which options require the
minimum amount of work and the greatest level of
ease. A link to the app store on a desktop provides
greater friction than a smart SMS link which can be
messaged to a prospect’s smartphone or a QR
code.
► Adding cross-channel lifelines, such as asking for
an email address, can help to prompt the visitor to
pick up where they left off. Sending information or
FAQs relevant to the to the moment the customer
exited the process may also resolve potential
issues. It also makes sure you are top of mind
when they open their inbox.

B Compliance
and security
A. ONLINE
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
phone
and verification
C. INNOVATION

reader
D. DIRECTION &
language
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT
Language BSN
Email and Pin Privacy
phone
Identification and Username Location
verification
B. Compliance and security
Summary scorecard
Compliance and security are imperative for any online experience, in order to meet legal
and regulatory requirements. For onboarding, taking the right steps with the security of
customer information can foster trust with the bank right from the beginning of the
customer relationship.
Criteria 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Identification and
3 3 2 3 3 1 3 3
verification
Email and phone 3 3 1 2 1 2 1 1
Username 3 2 2 3 2 1 2 1
Pin 2 2 2 3 2 1 2 1
Location 3 2 2 1 1 2 2 2
Privacy 2 3 2 2 1 1 1 2

phone
verification
B1. Identification and verification

Who are you?
The Dutch Anti-Money Laundering identification, while also maintaining a high level of
security. This is often complicated further if banks
and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) provide onboarding options through multiple channels.
Act (Wwft) dictates that each
Most banks within scope of the research requested
financial institution is required to verification via at least two verification methods. Many
perform client due diligence to used a combination of a scan of an ID document in
combination with a selfie or a video.
identify the client and verify their
identity.1 A further verification method included requesting a
small amount of money to be deposited from another
Many industries, for example retail, entertainment, account (for example, via iDEAL). iDEAL is an e-
and e-commerce request as little information up front commerce payment system used in the Netherlands,
as possible from customers, in order to prevent based on online banking. It should be noted that the
friction to the customer. When it comes to banking, derived identification method via iDEAL provides proof
legislation demands that prospects should identify of access to the bank account but it does not provide
themselves in order to demonstrate that they are a proof regarding the ID of a person, nor possession of
“real person”. an ID document.
Identification is an essential activity for the bank to Banks could also apply iDIN which does provide verified
mitigate the chances of fraudulent activity through attributes to mitigate against potential fraud. iDIN is a
identity fraud, as well as an opportunity to learn more Dutch identification service developed by Dutch banks.
about their incoming customer. The Wwft states that It is similar to iDEAL, however, only verified attributes
documents for purpose of verifying the client should are provided. All Dutch banks using iDIN are required
originate from a reliable source, but it does not specify to meet the EU identification and verification eIDAS
what ‘reliable source’ entails.2 regulations (eIDAS 1502/2015).
The bank must acquire specific details to verify the In addition to these core identity and verification
client, including the gender, first name, date of birth, questions, customers can also be required to disclose
and address.3 other identity information or financial behavior. For
example, following the Foreign Account Tax
Compliance Act (FATCA) and Common Reporting
Traditionally, identification and verification of Standards (CRS), clients have to disclose their identify
customers was conducted in person at a branch by and the value of their assets to foreign tax authorities.
customers providing legal documents including a
photograph. These forms of identification take the
form of a photograph, such as a passport, driver’s Next to this, while Source of Wealth and Source of
license or residence card, along with one (or more) of: Funds is not needed for onboarding retail customers,
many incumbents included these questions (for
example, regarding income) to add more detail on their
a) A posted letter or bills with a proof of address. risk assessment.
b) In-person identification by a human agent.
Banks should keep in mind that requesting additional
Identification at a physical bank generally occurs information can create friction and should be as
immediately and automatically as the customer service customer-centric as possible about the way they
representative is physically able to identify the collect information. Questions should be carefully
customer against their provided legal documents or devised to ensure they are comprehensible and in plain
bills. English.
Digital banking, however, faces the challenge of
providing a straightforward online way for customer
1. Wwft, Article 3, section 2A 2. Wwft, Article 11, section 1 3. Wwft, Article 33, section 2A1
4. Thomson Reuters, KYC compliance: the rising challenge for financial institutions (2017)
phone
verification

Who are you?
The results
Table 5 – Heatmap on Identification and Verification for challengers and incumbents
The majority of challengers and incumbents utilized Challenger 1

technology to streamline the identification process. Only Challenger 2
one incumbent still relied on outdated methods of Challenger 3
identification. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers
► All challengers exclusively provide onboarding
services in their app and were therefore able to
use the smartphone camera as part of their
onboarding process to meet identification and
verification requirements. Each challenger
included the requirement for prospects to take
pictures of legal forms of identification.
► Challenger 1, 2, and 4 also used an image of the
customer (selfie) taken on their smartphone as
part of identity verification.
► Challenger 3 used iDEAL to verify the identity of
their customers.
► Most of the challengers provided options for
different legal documents to be scanned (passport,
identity card, driver’s license), but Challenger 1
only allowed for a passport to be used.
► Challenger 3 was the only challenger that required
a verification payment from another account as
part of the verification process.
► Most of the banks completed the identification step
late in the process, with the exception of
Challenger 3 where identification occurred
relatively early.

phone
verification

Who are you?
► The majority of incumbents (Incumbent 1, 3, and
4) required customers to provide identification in ► Since identification and verification is a pivotal
their app. part of the onboarding process, this step should
► Incumbent 2 was the exception, only providing a ideally occur early in the process in order to
desktop-based experience. recognise any issues with the forms of
identification presented.
► As such, Incumbent 2 was unable to take
advantage of smartphone technologies such as the ► Identifying early also allows for reuse of
camera. Legal documents had to be manually identification information for later parts of the
uploaded as an image or pdf for each side of the process (providing birth dates, addresses etc.),
document. reducing the need for the customer to input
► Each bank provided the option of identifying using repetitive information.
a (Dutch) passport or identification card, with ► While only two forms of identification are legally
Incumbent 1 and 3 also providing the option to use required, it is helpful to provide the customer the
a driver’s license. option to choose between multiple types of
► Incumbent 1, 2, and 3 also required the customer identification.
to use their smartphone camera to scan the ► Challenger 3 and incumbent 2 could explore
provided document. alternative verification methods rather than the
► Incumbent 4 explicitly asked customers to place derived verification method. They could
their phone in the passport to scan details from the investigate the use of iDIN, which provides verified
passport chip. attributes, video calling or requesting a prospect
► Incumbent 1, 3, and 4 provided an option to take a to take a video while they articulate predefined
live video or photo (selfie) of the customer in order numbers or words.
to identify against the passport or ID card.
► Lastly, make sure to emphasise that you are taking
► Incumbent 3 used the iDEAL verification method.
good care of the customer’s identification data,
► Incumbent 2 utilized the identification method of a using language that they can relate to.
small verification deposit, which might hinder
users who do not have an existing Dutch bank
account to deposit from.
► For more information on the technology behind
identification, please refer to our Technology
section.

phone
verification
B2. Email and phone

Send me your digits
Because banks deal with money,

they want to ensure they have the
right contact information, including
email and phone. At the same time,
banks have an interest of keeping
the customer experience as short as
possible, avoiding channel switches.

phone
verification
B2. Email and phone

Send me your digits
The results
Table 6 – Heatmap on email and phone number use for challengers and incumbents
As challengers have a digital first or digital only business Challenger 1

model, verification of email and phone numbers is Challenger 2
prioritized, as opposed to incumbents who are more Challenger 3
geared towards traditional channels (e.g. physical Challenger 4
address). Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers EY Insights
► Challenger 1 and 2 require customers to verify ► A balance must be struck between security and
their email through a link and phone number via a convenience, and in this case the challengers have
confirmation code. overtly chosen to favor security (i.e. verification)
► Challenger 4 requires customers to verify their over speed.
phone number via a confirmation code. ► This decision is not a standalone decision, and is
► Challenger 3 does not verify email or phone. taken recognizing other security factors as well.
► Given that the challengers have all been set up
avoiding brick, mortars, and using snail mail, it is
Incumbents evident that additional assurance on the other
contact methods is more important (and more
► Incumbent 2 only verifies email via a confirmation secure).
code.
► Incumbent 1, 3 and 4 do not verify email or phone
number.

phone
verification
B3. Username
What’s in a name?
Who has forgotten their username in Unfortunately it is not sufficient to only utilize
biometric verification through an app via the
the past? Resetting user names can fingerprint scanner of the device. When there is a
be annoying for customers, match between the fingerprint stored on the device
and the fingerprint provided, the device releases a
introduces potential security issues cryptographic key to the bank. However, fingerprint
and can be expensive for scanners can be used by multiple users on one device,
thereby unlinking the authentication to the banking
organizations, for example, by app. Modern, secure methods to provide a second
increasing calls to the service center. form of biometric verification include face scans and
hand scans. This can also mitigate false positives from
only using one form of biometric verification.
As a general rule, banks should avoid user names as
part of the log-in procedure if possible. Whether a user
name was required depended on the service model,
namely, those banks which had only an app avoided
the need for a user name.

phone
verification
B3. Username
What’s in a name?
The results
Table 7 – Heatmap on Username use for challengers and incumbents
Most challengers have stepped away from user names, Challenger 1

preferring to use log-in codes and provide their services Challenger 2
through the app only. Incumbents use a combination of a Challenger 3
card reader and a username. This can be assigned or Challenger 4
chosen by the customer.
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 and 4 only provide their services ► Investigate the potential of secure biometric
through an app, which requires log-in codes verification methods, such as face scans and hand
instead of a username. scans to replace user names.
► Challenger 2 has selected to use the email as the ► From a legal perspective there are generally no
user name and at Challenger 3 customers can requirements for user names, apart from that they
choose it themselves. should avoid personally identifiable information.
► Don't impose unreasonable rules for usernames or
assign usernames. The more complex usernames
Incumbents are, the more difficult to remember.
► Incumbent 2 asks customers to create a user ► If service providers do require customers to create
name. a username, they should also allow for them to
(securely) change it. People change, and so do
► Incumbent 1 and 3 don’t use usernames, but
their online aliases or email addresses. Suggesting
allows users to log-in via a card reader and pin
usernames based on given names can also help
combination.
customers quickly figure out a name and increase
► Incumbent 4 assigns a user name, which can be ownership through the endowment effect.
changed in the app. If a customer forgets their
user name, they can receive a new user name in
the app or via post.

phone
verification
B4. Pin
Send me your digits
Regulators, banks, and customers Ensuring the elements are adequately independent
poses additional issues as they relate to mobile
want to make sure that money is devices. If a user has gained fraudulent access to a cell
secure and can only be accessed by phone, they can often also access confirmation emails
or text messages. Accordingly, the context of
the rightful owner. “independent channels” should be carefully considered
in the context of a potential compromise.
Under PSD2, and as reiterated in the regulatory

Information provided by the payment service provided,
technical standards (RTS), strong customer
such as a pre-defined PIN should not be considered to
authentication (SCA) is required for customers to
be knowledge element.
access their account. Authentication based on two or
more ‘elements’ categorized as:
When it comes to implementation of SCA, there are a
range of interpretations, but all banks in this research
a) Knowledge – something that only the user
used either passwords or pin codes, as well as e-
knows (for example, passwords, pins,
identifiers. Complex passwords are difficult to hack,
questions and swiping paths).
but National Institute of Standards and Technology
b) Possession – something that only the user (NIST) guidance which updated its recommendations in
possesses (for example, possession of a device 2017 to recognize the fact that “passwords should be
evidenced by a software or hardware token or easy to remember, but hard to guess, therefore
a card reader). removing recommendations of special characters for
c) Inherence – something the user is (for example example.1
a fingerprint or voice).
d) SCA requires that these ‘elements’ are
independent and in the event of a breach the
other element is not compromised.
1. National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST Special Publication 800-63B, Digital Identity Guidelines
<https://pages.nist.gov/800-63-3/sp800-63b.html>
phone
verification
B4. Pin
Send me your digits
The results
Table 8 – Heatmap on Pin use for challengers and incumbents
Challengers use a combination of access codes and touch Challenger 1

IDs. Only one challenger required a password as it also Challenger 2
provides services through the portal. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbents required a combination of card readers, pin Incumbent 1
codes, and traditional passwords. The password policy Incumbent 2
was not always in line with the NIST guidance. Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers
► All challengers (apart from Challenger 2) used
login or access code as well as a touch ID.
► When defining the code, Challenger 4 actually hid
the screen when the camera was recording, which
was a nice touch.
► Challenger 2 required a password with automatic
strength checker.

phone
verification
B4. Pin
Send me your digits
► Incumbent 1, 2, and 3 use e-identifiers on their
website and pin codes as well as fingerprints on ► Design the system assuming it will be
the app. The e-identifier is issued at the end of the compromised, which means there should be
onboarding experience. For more information on several safety measures in place to prevent
the use of e-identifier as an element of possession, unauthorized use or mitigation of damage.
please refer to section C3 Card Reader. ► Ensure new security options can be easily
integrated into the system.
► As part of the onboarding journey, customers of ► Incumbent 2 and Incumbent 4 should update their
Incumbent 4 create a five digit mobile PIN. Once password policy to align to the NIST guidance.
they have been accepted, they have to create a ► A temporary password is not an ideal solution.
password to access the bank’s services via the ► Show the password strength to enable user to
portal (outside the app). know the complexity of the entered password.
► Incumbent 4 has recently introduced a card
scanner for customers who don’t have a
smartphone or tablet to replace their transaction
authentication number (TAN) codes which were
previously issued only via the mobile phone.
► The scanner is used to confirm online payments,
but not to gain access to the account.
► Incumbent 2 and 4 use passwords with defined
requirements, for example, minimum length of 8
characters and a requirement for special
characters.
► The latter is no longer in line with the NIST
updated guidance. Other NIST recommendations
are also not included, for example, a limit of
previous breach exposures, restriction on context
specific words, commonly used passwords, and
dictionary words.
► The Incumbent 2 password is only temporary,
required for the onboarding process only and is
replaced by an e-identifier and faceID for iOS
customers when they download the app.

phone
verification
B5. Location
Where are you?
Banks must verify the address of

their customers. This information is
usually acquired by asking
customers to provide their address,
though some challengers enabled
(optional) geo-location to fast-track
this process.

phone
verification
B5. Location
Where are you?
The results
Table 9 – Heatmap on Location for challengers and incumbents
Only one challenger enabled customers to find their Challenger 1

address through geolocation. Challenger 2
Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 enabled customers to “use my ► Speed and convenience is critical in onboarding.
current location”. Don’t underestimate the value of expediting this
► Challenger 2 and 4 used a search bar to expedite process, through enabling geolocation or even
this process, though the search bar of Challenger 4 finding the address in an expedited fashion.
was not optimized for the Dutch practice of ► Geolocation adds an additional layer of security, by
including the number before the street name. validating the prospect is in the location where
► Challenger 3 allowed customers to find their they claim to be.
address by entering postcode and house number.
Incumbents
► None used geolocation to expedite this process.
► Incumbent 1 required customers to complete the
location manually.
► Incumbent 2, 3 and 4 allowed customers to find
their address by entering their postcode and house
number.

phone
verification
B6. Privacy
Keep me safe
Privacy today is about both The second principle of purpose limitation requires
banks to collect personal data only for specified,
transparency and value exchange. explicit, and legitimate purposes. This means that
That's how companies should look at banks should not process data in any way that is not
compatible with those purposes.
this going forward: How transparent
am I about the data I collect? What According to article 6(4) GDPR, it is possible to
process personal data for a purpose other than that
do I share back? for which the personal data have been collected, either
The onboarding experience centers on the collection of (i) Based on consent.

personal data and documentation needed to start a (ii) Based on a legal obligation.
business relationship between a bank and a customer.
(iii) If the other purpose is compatible with the
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
purposes for which the personal data are initially
came into force in 2018 and has wide reaching
collected.
implications for which and how data may be collected,
used and stored.
Clearly, there are different ways to interpret the above
restrictions, which we will explore later in this section.
During onboarding banks are required to satisfy Anti- Whichever approach is adopted, banks should
Money-Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism (CTF) document the legal basis for processing the data.
rules and undertake initial due diligence on prospective
customers by verifying their identity. This has resulted
in somewhat of a dichotomy, requiring banks on one The third principle refers to data minimization, which
hand to satisfy Know Your Customer (KYC) means personal data should be adequate, relevant,
requirements, yet protect the privacy rights on and limited to what is necessary in relation to the
individuals granted by GDPR. purposes for which they are processed. As such, data
cannot be processed unless it is needed to be
processed in order achieve the previously mentioned
GDPR implemented a framework of seven principles
purposes.
for processing personal data.1 These are:
The fourth principle is accuracy, meaning that banks
1) Lawfulness, fairness, and transparency.
are required to ensure that personal data is accurate
2) Purpose limitation. and kept up to date where it is necessary. The fifth
3) Data minimization. principle is storage limitation. It entails that personal
4) Accuracy. data must be kept in a form that makes it possible to
5) Storage limitation. identify data subjects for no longer than is necessary
6) Integrity and confidentiality (security). for the purposes of the processing.
7) Accountability.
The sixth principle of integrity and confidentiality
These principles provide an important foundation in requires that in the processing of personal data
designing what information is collected from appropriate security of personal data is ensured. In
customers and how it is collected. addition to the six data protection principles, the GDPR
also includes the principle of accountability, requiring
the controller (the bank) to be responsible for
The first principle concerns lawfulness, fairness, and
compliance with the principles.
transparency. This means banks should process
personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner
in relation to their data subjects. Transparency implies Law is not the only reason why banks should focus on
that information and communication relating to the privacy. The 2020 Consumer Data Privacy survey
processing of personal data should be easily accessible highlights the increased focus of customers on their
and written in clear, customer-centric language. personal data.2 54% of consumers say COVID-19 has
made them more aware of the personal data they
share than they were before the pandemic. Younger
generations in particular are much more aware of
privacy and sharing data – and the impact thereof.
1. https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/principles/
2. EY, Consumer Data Privacy Report: the world has changed. Is it time to think differently about privacy?, 2020.
phone
verification
B6. Privacy
Keep me safe
The results
Table 8 – Heatmap on privacy for challengers and incumbents
Both incumbents and challengers can create more Challenger 1

awareness about privacy implications to their customers. Challenger 2
Challengers do outperform incumbents, mainly because Challenger 3
they provide explicit information and communication Challenger 4
about privacy. Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Low Medium High
Challengers strategically to encourage customers to consent.

Visually, it could appear to customers they had to
► Challenger 1 and 4 do not explicitly ask for consent in order to continue with the journey. The
consent. When personal data is based on one of button could be re-designed to encourage
the other six possible legal bases (e.g. such as prospects to make an objective decision.
based on the performance of a the contract), no
► Challenger 3 asked prospects whether they wanted
consent is required. In the privacy policy each
to receive messages based on their online
purpose should be documented separately,
behavior. In the sentence below they included
including the legal basis.
additional context, explaining these were
► Challenger 1 and 4 refer to their privacy policy in “standard” recommendations. Overall this
the terms and condition. Their privacy policies sentence could be updated to provide additional
(which are separate documents) are easily clarity how their information will be used and what
accessible online and have been written using the specific value is to customers.
customer-centric language. Customers can also
change their preferences in the app.
► Challenger 4 sent an email with their updated Incumbents
privacy policy following onboarding, which drew ► Incumbent 1, 2, and 3 also don’t explicitly ask for
attention to privacy and consent at a later stage. consent, nor do they draw attention and inform
► Challenger 1 and 4 do not explicitly inform customers about the applicable privacy policy or
prospects about their privacy policies. They could policy. It would be best practice to inform
do more to draw customer attention to their customers more explicitly, also considering the
privacy policy in the journey itself. GDPR principles of transparency and access.
► Overall, Challenger 2 performed best in this ► Incumbent 4 includes a link to a privacy policy, but
category, providing a clear overview of the there is no further introduction or context provided
different ways customer data should be used and about this statement.
shared, including value statements and indicating
clearly which areas were optional. In addition, the
customer actually had to opt-in. The only potential
area for Challenger 2 to address was that the
“accept and continue” button was highlighted

phone
verification
B6. Privacy
Keep me safe
EY Insights allowed to re-use information, but this is a grey

area which requires legal assessment as
► Privacy information should be easily accessible. processing of personal data should be in
This means that the data subject should not have accordance with article 6(4) of the GDPR.
to seek out the information; it should be
► By way of example, if a campaign is started and it’s
immediately apparent to them where and how this
uncertain whether you can use legitimate interest
information can be accessed, for example by
or whether you should ask for consent, this
providing it directly to them, by linking them to it,
decision should be documented, which should be in
by clearly signposting it or as an answer to a
line with applicable laws and guidance of the
natural language question (for example in an
supervisory authority and your risk appetite.
online layered privacy statement, in FAQs, by way
of contextual pop-ups which activate when a data ► If you do receive Data Subject (Access) Requests
subject fills in an online form, or in an interactive around this campaign, spend time to understand
digital context through a chatbot interface, etc.). why customers were unhappy, as this may not
directly be related to the additional marketing
► Every organization that maintains a website should
campaign.
publish a privacy statement on the website. A
direct link to this privacy statement should be ► There are a number of data subject access request
clearly visible on each page of this website under a possible under GDPR. Banks should, for example,
commonly used term (such as “Privacy”, “Privacy provide additional reassurance to customers, to
Policy” or “Data Protection Notice”). describe how they can access and retain data that
is being held about them and how they can revoke
► For apps, the necessary information should also be
consent. It has never been as important to be clear
made available from an online store prior to
about data retention and data deletion.
download. Once the app is installed, the
information still needs to be easily accessible from ► Compliance with GDPR is not a “set and forget”
within the app. One way to meet this requirement exercise, satisfied by completing an internal policy
is to ensure that the information is never more or privacy policy, but rather a fundamental and
than “two taps away” (e.g. by including a cultural change in the mind set of banks and the
“Privacy”/ “Data Protection” option in the menu way they work.
functionality of the app). ► Test privacy policies with customers. Do they
► Additionally, the privacy information in question understand how their information will be used?
should be specific to the particular app and should
not merely be the generic privacy policy of the
company that owns the app or makes it available
to the public." Therefore, as a best practice: at the
point of collection of the personal data in an online
context a link to the privacy statement is provided
or that this information is made available on the
same page on which the personal data is collected.
► Banks should be transparent and fair to their
customers if they want to use data for specific
reasons by highlighting a clear value proposition to
customers.
► Document consent in line with the account or
service. If services are extended but they are in
line with your existing service (for example, adding
another financial service) you may technically be

C Innovation
A. ONLINE
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
phone
and verification
C. INNOVATION

reader
D. DIRECTION &
language
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT
Language BSN
Milestones Card reader Speed UX / UI
C. Innovation
Summary scorecard
Just because a prospect has entered the onboarding journey does not mean they
will complete it. There are a range of techniques that can be harnessed to increase the
likelihood that a prospect will successfully complete the journey and become a customer.
Criteria 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Milestones 3 2 2 1 2 1 2 2
Dashboard 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2
Card reader 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 2
Measure 3 1 1 1 3 1 1 1
Speed 3 2 3 3 2 2 3 3
Technology 3 2 2 2 2 1 2 2
UX / UI 3 2 2 2 2 1 3 3

C1. Milestones
Celebrate success
Including milestones gives the Milestones can be as simple as small pieces of positive
reinforcement text for having completed part of the
customer visibility of how far along journey, to a more complex strategy of including
they are in the process as well as a gamification aspects.
sense of achievement having As a whole, milestones are a way to increase customer

completed parts of the onboarding engagement with the onboarding journey, making it
more likely that the full journey will be completed.
journey.

C1. Milestones
Celebrate success
The results
Table 10 – Heatmap on Milestones for challengers and incumbents
Challengers tended to include highly visual indications of Challenger 1

milestones reached and some even experimented with Challenger 2
gamification aspects to positively reinforce the user to Challenger 3
continue their onboarding journey. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 does this in the most unique manner ► Incumbent 1 includes a progress bar up the top,
of all the banks investigated, using gamification but does not include the specific steps. There is
aspects in order to pique the customers’ curiosity one confirmation screen which includes large
and keep them engaged with their banking journey. “check mark”, but no supporting language.
► Badges are awarded for the customer hitting their ► Incumbent 2 did not include milestones. Along with
personal financial goals, additional products are the lack of a central journey, this contributed to
described as “add-ons” and the interface is highly confusion on how far along the journey the
visual, including graphs and key stats. customer was and what was left to be done.
► Challenger 3 included a progress bar visual in a ► While Incumbent 3 did not include an explicit
striking colour so users are able to keep track of progress bar for the main part of the onboarding
their journey, although it was a bit too slim to be journey, there were pages with positive
immediately noticeable. Mini-milestone screens are reinforcement of what was just completed
given along the way to further split out (“Great!”), as well as an indication of what was to
subsections, as well as simple positive visuals come (“We’d like to get to know you more”).
(ticks and thumbs up) to reinforce the customer ► Incumbent 4 does not have a progress bar, but
along the journey. does include mini-milestones to celebrate
progress.

C1. Milestones
Celebrate success
EY Insights
► Using progressive disclosure to sequence
information and actions across several screens
allows the customer not to be overwhelmed, but to
be taken by the hand in a contextual flow.
► Adding milestones should always be considered as
they can be beneficial for customer engagement in
almost every journey – even adding a simple
progress bar or positive feedback can produce a
sense of ownership in the customer and further
engagement with the digital journey.
► While it may be tempting to include heavy
gamification into the journey, consider the
customer persona that the digital journey is being
created for, as adding gamification aspects can
create complexity for those who are less digitally
literate.

C2. When can you use your account

Welcome home
In the past, receiving a payment card With a digital banking journey, banks can redefine the
perception of when a bank account is “ready to use,”
usually unintentionally signalled encouraging customers to be engaged earlier with the
when an account was ready for use. bank and its products and feel a tangible sense of
progress with their onboarding journey.
This puts some responsibility on the
postal system for delivering a bank
card, and thus limited the perception
of full access to the account.

C2. When can you use your account

Welcome home
The results
Table 11 – Heatmap on perception of account availability for challengers and incumbents
Challengers tended towards notifying the user earlier Challenger 1

rather than later that their account was ready to use. Challenger 2
Incumbents often held themselves up around the process Challenger 3
of receiving a bank card and/or card reader, losing the Challenger 4
benefit of earlier engagement. Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers ► However, the Incumbent 1 card arrives fairly

quickly, allowing the customer to start within 2-3
► As soon as the Challenger 1 app is downloaded, working days.
Challenger 1 treats the user as a “customer,”
prompting the user to “complete their profile” and
onboard, making the account “active” as soon as EY Insights
that is complete. While this may help the user feel ► As the Dutch regulator, DNB is known to be.
attachment to Challenger 1 early on in the However, banks should consider providing limited
process, this may also be confusing to some users functionality to prospective customers who are
who are expecting to start an onboarding journey eager to get started.
rather than be seemingly caught in the middle of
► If a customer is unsure about when an account is
an onboarding journey.
available, generally they will wait until a card
► Challenger 4 has a screen encouraging the user to arrives to start using their account. Ensure that
add money to the account in order to get started, there is some notice given to a customer if the
following the identification step. account is actually available earlier than when the
► It should be noted that the Dutch regulator DNB is card arrives.
uncomfortable with banks allowing clients to ► Providing the option of setting up mobile payments
execute payments through a newly opened bank or a virtual card, even if a physical card has not
account before onboarding, assigning a client risk arrived yet, is a neat way of creating the
rating and transaction profile has been completed. perspective of immediate and full account
Therefore, banks should be wary of allowing too availability.
much activity before the onboarding has been
► Simply showing the new customer’s home banking
completed
screen at the end of the onboarding process can
also signal account availability.
Incumbents
► Incumbent 1 and 3 both require an e-identifier and
a card to log in to internet banking and also
explicitly state that the onboarding process is not
complete without receiving card and e-identifier.

C3. Card reader

E-are you
Regulation demands authentication While card readers or e-identifiers can be considered

secure, modern banks prefer to use the features
in order for customers to access already inherent in the device. Card readers can
their money. This involves three impose additional frustration on customers as this
increases the waiting time to use the account
elements: knowledge, possession (customers have to wait for the card reader before
and inherence. The first and last they can use their account), they have to remember to
carry their device, devices can break and incur a
element were previously addressed charge which are directly and indirectly forwarded to
in Pin. The second element of the customer.
possession can refer to something

that only the user possesses, for
example, possession of a device
evidenced by a software or hardware
token or a card reader.

C3. Card reader

E-are you
The results
Table 12 – Heatmap on Card Readers for challengers and incumbents
Challengers don’t use card readers, preferring instead to Challenger 1

use device-based verification systems. These are not Challenger 2
entirely fraud-resistant nor future proof. Incumbents all Challenger 3
still use card readers. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► No challengers used a card reader, requiring ► With mobile banking becoming increasingly the
customers instead to use the app on the norm, we predict the incumbents will roll out a
smartphone instead to meet the element of strategy in the future to replace card readers with
possession via a code or a fingerprint. in-app authentication methods.
► Challenger 3 uses a QR code reader to verify ► However, given the fact that the incumbents also
possession. serve a population which does not (yet) always
transact through apps, this does pose a security
problem.
Incumbents ► While card readers should not be the norm any
► All incumbents used card readers, which were longer, we are advocates of at least providing
issued to the customers address at the end of the choice to customers, like Incumbent 4 has done.
online onboarding process. Incumbent 3 refers to On the other hand, providing choice also incurs
their device as an e-identifier, while the other additional costs (i.e. maintaining dual systems).
incumbent have included their names in the ► International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) are
scanner’s name. used as unique identifiers for smartphones and
► Notably, Incumbent 4 used to allow customers to tablets. Banks use these numbers to identify valid
transact by using transaction authentication devices. There have been serious fraud cases
number (TAN) numbers, which were one time relating to IMEI numbers, with one operating
passwords sent to customer’s phone numbers. system expecting to announce significant changes
They now require customers to either use the app to the use of IMEI numbers by third party
or to use the scanner. organizations. Accordingly, simply relying on IMEI
numbers is not a future proof method of
verification. Relying on a third party architecture
(provided by the device or the operating system or
both) is subject to change and/or fraud. Those
banks who do should be prepared to find more
secure alternatives.

C4. Measure
Test, iterate, repeat
Customer feedback is a critical Most banks collect insights through tracking the user
journey (including points of attrition) and collecting
component to measure how direct feedback through Net Promoter Score (NPS) or
customers feel about the services other customer surveys and requesting customer
feedback. Customer measurement has evolved in the
and which areas should be improved past few years and has become an increasingly
upon to increase the perceived important non-financial metric. There are various ways
to measure customer satisfaction, each of which with
ability of customers to complete the their own benefits and drawbacks, but most of which
journey. are derived from simple surveys. Designing and
implementing the right survey methodology warrants
sufficient investment and should reflect both the value
to the customer and the organization.

C4. Measure
Test, iterate, repeat
The results
Table 13 – Heatmap on Measuring feedback for challengers and incumbents
Not all challengers or incumbents provide the ability for Challenger 1

customers to provide feedback. This is a lost opportunity Challenger 2
to identify improvement points and increase the ability to Challenger 3
improve the onboarding journey. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 adopted the NPS measurement ► For those who have not yet introduced customer
approach, sending through an email following measurement in the onboarding journey, we
completion asking how likely customers are to encourage you to do so and to think carefully
recommend them to a friend or colleague. about which methodology to apply and how the
results can be used. Whatever is selected, it should
be optional, simple, and too onerous.
Incumbents
► At the end of the journey, Incumbent 1 customers
were prompted to provide feedback, with the
question how easy they made it for customers.
This is a common question informing the CES, or
customer effort score. Incumbent 1 has decided
that the best indication of a “good” customer
experience is “effort” and is seeking input into
which elements might still be complex.
► Other incumbents did not provide the opportunity
for customers to provide feedback.

C5. Speed
The hare and the tortoise
A critical requirement for creating a On the other hand, banks should also be cautious of
asking not enough information to meet their AML and
successful onboarding journey is CDD requirements or enable successful servicing of
speed. The more time, information clients. Reading instructions and understanding the
request also takes additional time. Intuitive design
or effort is requested from choices expedite this journey.
prospects, the more likely they will
Also, don’t underestimate the appearance of progress
not complete the onboarding and speed. A list feels intuitively longer than a series
journey. of short actions on a screen. Finally, the onboarding
journey is not complete until everything is actually
To prevent a cumbersome onboarding experience, approved and customers can actually start to use their
banks should avoid asking prospects for information account, so this should also be taken into
which is unnecessary, or can be asked at a later stage consideration.
– after the onboarding has already been successfully
implemented.

C5. Speed
The results
Table 14 – Heatmap on Speed for challengers and incumbents
Challengers often advertise their onboarding journeys to Challenger 1

be shorter, however in practice this is not always the case. Challenger 2
Some incumbents had longer onboarding journeys due to Challenger 3
an overload of unnecessary information. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers
► Challenger 4 has the shortest onboarding
experience, involving around 27 actions (4
minutes, 30 seconds), followed by Challenger 3 (5
minutes), with a total of 30 actions and Challenger
1 with 32 actions.
► Challenger 2 is the longest of the challenger
onboarding journeys, requiring about 40 actions.
This is advertised to be 8 minutes, though our
researcher took over 10 minutes.

C5. Speed
► Incumbent 3 involves around 32 actions (10 ► Avoid making long lists.
minutes) and avoids long lists. The journey was ► Dedicate a single screen for each action, including
fast and efficient. a progress bar to indicate how far prospects are in
► Customers at Incumbent 3 were approved fast their journey and encourage them to continue.
(within hours), however customers had to await ► Carefully consider which questions are asked at
letters and a card reader ( further elaborated upon what stage.
previously in section C3) before they could use ► Remove any questions which are not necessary to
their account. All-in-all this process was still reduce the length of time of onboarding.
completed within 4 days from application.
► Incumbent 1 involves around 54 actions, however
this took into account the actions the researcher
took after downloading the regular app, which
could not be used for onboarding. Once the
researcher commenced with the identification app,
the journey was completed in around 6 minutes.
This journey involves noticeably less screens and
information is often presented as a list.
► Incumbent 2 involved at around 35 actions. While
the journey was shorter, information and questions
were presented as lists and also included some
questions which were not necessary. For example,
home, work, and cell phone numbers. In addition,
lengthy explanations were introduced which were
not always necessary. For example, the
explanation for the password was introduced in 45
words. This could easily be avoided by including an
automatic password strength meter.
► Incumbent 4 took around 46 actions, including the
actions the researcher took before they were
transitioned to the app. Overall, the journey was
completed in less than 10 minutes.

C6. Technology
Taking a look under the hood
As we are investigating the online A growing amount of third parties specialize in digital
identification services that banks can leverage to
onboarding experience, technology resolve these challenges. There are increasingly
plays a major part in this. For this advanced ways for technology to play a secure role in
identification. For example, some banks merely take a
section, we investigated which picture of the content of the passports, but modern
technology was applied (and why) passports are also equipped with a chip meeting the
ICAO 9303 standard which can be used more securely.
and the technology behind These new ID cards are becoming the norm in most
identification. countries and are now mandated in the European
Union. Information stored on the chip is in many ways
the same as that contained within the passport.
Noticeably, seven out of eight banks investigated only
included an app onboarding experience. The reason for
this is that smartphones contain powerful However, information stored on the chip is encrypted
identification technology which enables additional and cannot be manipulated, unlike its physical
layers of security. However, the requirement to have a counterpart. The picture is available at a high
smartphone meeting specific standards is not inclusive resolution and does not include any additional
to the entire population. One incumbent restricts the watermarks which may impact visibility and the ability
onboarding experience to one mobile operating to match faces. Modern smartphones can read and
system, requiring all users whose phone run on verify the chips in identity documents, without
another (well known) operating system to make an additional hardware required.
appointment with the branch. Given the trend to close
branches, this service model is unsustainable.
Furthermore, given the shift from branches in the few
months, we expect there will be an uplift of customer
groups who do not have access to the latest
technology.

C6. Technology
The results
Table 15 – Heatmap on Technology for challengers and incumbents
The challengers only provide onboarding services in their Challenger 1

apps and utilized smartphone technology as part of their Challenger 2
onboarding process. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers
► All challengers exclusively provide onboarding
services in the app and were therefore able to use
the smartphone camera as part of their
onboarding process to meet identification
requirements. Each challenger included the
requirement for prospects to take pictures of legal
forms of identification.
► All challengers used a combination of a passport
picture with an image of the customer (selfie)
taken by the smartphone as part of identity
verification.
► While Challenger 2, 3, and 4 only required a
picture to be taken, Challenger 1 added a layer of
security by requiring a short video of the prospect
(saying numbers out loud). Challenger 3 uses the
start-up iProov to provide customer verification
technology and SCA process. Challenger 2
partners with the Dutch KYC start-up Fourthline
for KYC checks and Challenger 1 and 4 use Onfido
for the check of the identity document and facial
check via selfie.
► The selfie-scanning method of Challenger 4 was
unstable, requiring a few attempts in our test to
identify a face properly.

C6. Technology
► Incumbent 4 only supports one phone operating ► Given the increased closing rate of physical bank
system. Prospects with a different operating locations, we expect there will be an uplift of
system have to onboard via the branch. customer groups who do not have access to the
► Incumbent 1, 3, and 4 required the customer to latest technology. An investigation into what
use their smartphone camera in order to take a technology prospective customers use (and would
scan of the identification document provided. like to use) will pay dividends here.
Incumbent 1 and 4 use the UK-based biometric ► Those banks who do not yet have an in-app
authentication company iProov. onboarding experience, or involve additional
► Incumbent 2 is the only bank where prospects channels which are not used during the service
must onboard via the website. They must submit model should invest in creating and streamlining
copies of their passport or ID card as a JPEG. This these.
heightens the risk that the submitted copies do not ► Third party vendors can be utilized to provide high
meet the bank’s standards and will require quality, robust, and regulated digital identification
additional follow up. Compared with the biometric solutions at potentially a fraction of the time and
chip verification, this is also a less secure method. cost of building in-house. Examples of
► As discussed in the identification section, banks identification areas that can be boosted by digital
provided the option of identifying using a (Dutch) technologies include OCR recognition for
passport or identification card, with Incumbent 1 documents, initiating short video calls with human
and Incumbent 3 also providing the option to use a agents to confirm identity, and NFC.
driver’s license. ► For those banks considering investing in a low-fi
► Incumbent 1 also utilised Near Field onboarding experience (for example, by using a
Communication (NFC) technology where customer desktop), additional security measures could be
information could be extracted from newer legal applied to strengthen security. An example is that
documents by “tapping” the phone against the a video call may be appropriate as an extra
identification document. While this seemed to be measure. Additional request of documentation
convenient, it also required the customer to also may also be required.
take pictures of each side of the ID beforehand and ► The future of customer onboarding as it relates to
select what version of legal document they had in identification will be an interesting topic to stay
order to see if they could be used with the abreast. There has been long talk of a financial ID
technology. which could be linked to physical biometrics. We
► Both Incumbent 1 and 3 provided an option to take expect significant development in this field over
a live video/photo of the customer in order to the next few years.
identify against the provided documents.
► Due to Incumbent 2 only providing a web-based
digital onboarding journey, they were unable to
take advantage of smartphone technologies such
as the camera. Legal documents had to be
manually uploaded as an image or pdf for each
side of the document. Incumbent 2 and 4 were the
only incumbent banks in this research that utilized
the identification method of a small verification
deposit, which might hinder new users who do not
have another bank account to deposit from.

C7. UX/UI
Let’s talk about CX
User Experience (UX) describes the In times where a bank must become almost fully
digitally driven (such as the COVID-19 pandemic), the
full scope of how a user experiences UX and UI should be assessed on how usable it is with a
a digital application and how digital wide range of audiences – including an easy-to-use
interface for those who lack technological fluency and
developers should create with the enough information in the process for those who lack
main UX goal of an informative, financial literacy.
easy-to-use and most importantly

pleasant experience. To meet these
goals, it is crucial to put together fit-
for-purpose interaction elements as
part of the User Interface (UI)
design.

C7. UX/UI
The results
Table 16 – Heatmap on UX/UI for challengers and incumbents
The challengers followed most of the general UX Challenger 1

principles well, from high visibility of important Challenger 2
information to having intuitive navigation elements. Challenger 3
Text heavy pages, clunky navigation, and a lack of Challenger 4
images characterized the experience on the incumbents’ Incumbent 1
sites.
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 took the most unique approach to UX, ► Incumbent 2’s web experience is reminiscent of
using gamification with a view of milestones in what many people think of a “traditional banking
order to complete the onboarding process. It also experience” – clunky and unintuitive. Each page
treats the user signing up for a profile as “already was a plain text form without a proper link to a
a customer” and adding banking products as part central “journey” to complete onboarding.
of “completing your profile”. ► Incumbent 1’s app provided information in a
► Each of the challengers followed most of the straightforward manner and the UI was designed
general UX principles well, from high visibility of with large fields, readable fonts, and clear colours.
important information (including contact ► However, customers from incumbent 1 had to
information if support is required) and having scroll down at certain sections to see the full set of
intuitive navigation elements, all the way down to information required from the user. Although it
considering functional and eye-catching colours was readable, it was text heavy. Incumbent 1 also
and fonts. added files of additional terms and conditions
► Challenger 4 constantly prompted the prospect to without summarizing them first.
“add funds” to their account throughout the ► Incumbent 3 and 4 had the closest to what we
process. This could be better placed as part of would consider a modern digital banking app (such
their home page at the end of the process, as it as those provided by the challengers) – a clean
was fairly distracting during the process. interface, information presented clearly and
graphics that added to the experience.

C7. UX/UI
EY Insights
► There are more gains to be achieved for
incumbents on the topic of UX and UI. This is an
important first impression, so it should reflect your
brand. Are you a modern bank? Show the
customer through modern choices of visual
display, the use of colors and smart positioning of
intuitive language.
► Be transparent and show added value early and
often to the customer. This gives them incentive at
each step to provide information to complete the
process.
► Regardless of the customer persona, as a bank
chooses to target with their website/app
experience, accessibility should be kept in mind to
cater for difficulties in areas such as hearing,
mobility, and literacy. Large software companies
have released design guidelines and tools that can
be utilised in order to make the digital experience
more accessible for all users. Furthermore, the EU
is currently deciding whether to enforce
accessibility with legislation, so this can keep you
legally ahead of the curve.
► Consider human psychology as part of UX design.
Many users already have an existing idea on
general app usage and icon meanings, so take
advantage of this when designing the app. For
greatest effect, try to understand people’s mental
model through explorative design research and
qualitative validation while designing in order not
to make any assumptions.
► Spend less time trying to sell add-ons for the
product (or in some cases, the product itself),
since the user has already consciously made a
commitment to the product by initiating
onboarding. Instead, focus on streamlined
onboarding without unnecessary steps, providing
clear timeframes for things to happen and always
ask “Why?” from the customer’s perspective.

D Direction
and customization
A. ONLINE
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
phone
and verification
C. INNOVATION

reader
D. DIRECTION &
language
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT
Language BSN
Guidance Customer friendly
language
D. Direction and customization
Summary scorecard
No matter how seemingly ideal an onboarding journey is built, some customers will always
have difficulty along the way. Banks should guide and support customers as much as
possible throughout the journey. Furthermore, customizing the process will create
empathy with the customer, increasing the likelihood of a completed journey.
Criteria 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Support 2 3 3 2 2 2 1 2
Guidance 3 2 3 2 2 1 2 3
Pre-filled 3 2 2 2 2 1 3 2
Customer
3 2 3 3 2 1 2 3
friendly language
Personalization 2 3 3 2 2 1 1 1

language
D1. Support
Here to help
The best journeys do not only cover A noticeable difference between incumbents and
challengers was the use of chatbots. Support service
the basics of onboarding, but also models are changing rapidly. Since 2018 the Dutch
account for situations where things market has witnessed an important development of
live chat and chatbots, which was preceded by an
don’t go to plan. The second factor international trend. Chatbots provide excellent
in the previously mentioned “Fogg opportunities to improve the customer experience in
the marketing, sales, and service domain.
model” addresses the user’s
perceived ability to complete a Chatbots are increasingly offering conversational
experiences based on text-based dialogue, enabling
specific task. If users face a problem, customers to have faster and more relevant
it increases the chance they will interactions. When it comes to the onboarding journey,
incumbents rely on traditional support channels (call
become frustrated and stop the center), whereas most challengers applied a
process. For that reason, we also combination of Intelligent Virtual Agents (IVA) and
human chat.
examined to what extent “in-app”
support is offered during the
journey. Support should be provided
fast, in customer-centric language
with a focus on resolving the issue at
the time.

language
D1. Support
Here to help
The results
Table 17 – Heatmap on Support for challengers and incumbents
Both challengers and incumbents could improve on their Challenger 1

support options provided during the journey, as help was Challenger 2
not easily accessible from within the app. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 2 and 3 were best in class, a ► Incumbent 3 does not provide a support option in
combination of IVA and human agent. The the app. During one test, a research faced an error
customer issue was dealt with fast and the human uploading an identity document and no resolution
agent used customer-centric, modern language. was offered.
► Challenger 1 and 4 do provide IVA and human ► All Incumbents except Incumbent 3 provided call
agent support, but these were not easily accessed center support.
via the app.

language
D1. Support
Here to help
EY Insights
► A self-service experience should be designed in
such a way that it solves challenges instead of
creating them. Design to avoid the customer
having to ask for support in the first place.
► However, when customers do need additional
support, they tend to prefer service provided by
humans. Adding a chatbot to the customer
experience should be supported by a human agent
for any complicated question which cannot readily
be resolved. If a bot does not meet the business
needs, it may lead to additional frustration and
attrition.
► However, technology is changing fast. Chatbots
are increasingly powerful, using Natural Language
Processing to interpret, recognize, and understand
requests through free language. Machine learning
techniques make chatbots more effective,
reducing the need for human assistance.
► Most incumbents are already investing in a chatbot
or IVA experience. Incumbent 2 is the only bank
who has not yet publicly stated they are
developing chatbots.
► We recommend banks and challengers to also
extend chatbots to support customer onboarding
in the coming years.
► We haven’t yet seen the use of an empathetic
chatbot which can be used to guide users through
the onboarding experience. Empathetic chatbots
can be programmed to walk customers through all
steps, as well as the set up process.
► Organizations should invest in IVA innovation, so
that the interaction feels authentic and so the
virtual agent can respond to a wide range of
questions.

language
D2. Guidance
Show me the way
Banking is complex and FS firms As such, it is important to assure prospects their data
is secure and their information will be handled
have a tendency to provide a lot of appropriately. Best practice is to provide these
information. Lengthy and permissions at an appropriate time or at the
appropriate device feature. For example, at the
information-dense content can and moment identification is requested, include a relevant
should be avoided in a digital format. data permission request accompanied by assurance
over how this information is treated and that it will not
Challengers provide bite-sized be shared. This also avoids an overload of information.
information with the opportunity to
Customers should also be provided with the rationale
find out more at each stage, through behind their request. For example, if a question is
the use hyperlinks or the information posed whether a customer is a US citizen, provide a
simple short explanation here. Best practice here is to
icon. also provide a hyperlink allowing prospects to find
more information should they seek it (though they
Banking customers worry about providing their should not be directed away from the journey).
personal and financial information online. In this
regard, challengers have more difficulty as they do not
enjoy the same amount of trust that incumbents have
due to their brand recognition.

language
D2. Guidance
Show me the way
The results
Table 18 – Heatmap on Guidance for challengers and incumbents
Incumbents were more likely to use lengthy, information Challenger 1

dense or internally focused guidance, while challengers Challenger 2
generally gave more context and provide a clearer Challenger 3
message. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 3 provides the opportunity for ► Incumbent 1 provides the opportunity for
customers to request further information at customers to request further information for some
specific questions by including an information icon. challenging questions by including an information
In addition, Challenger 3 sometimes provides some icon. For other questions they provide contextual
additional information for extra context. For explanation about why they asked the question, for
example, after a customer has selected their example when they ask for a phone number they
access code they add “deze code gebruik je om in state “dit nummer hebben we nodig om je
deze app in te loggen” or “you can use this code to betaalpas te activeren” or “we need this number to
log-in to the app”. activate your payment card”.
► Challenger 2 provides less context or information ► However, compared to the challengers, Incumbent
to prospects at specific steps. 1 sometimes presented information or guidance in
► Challenger 1 focuses on providing as little multiple sentences where fewer words could
information per screen as possible, so that the suffice.
message is clear. By way of example, many ► Incumbent 3 provided a range of confirmation
screens only include 3-5 words. Only one screen screens throughout the onboarding journey.
provides additional guidance, which is the screen ► Incumbent 3 provides less information about why
where a prospects BSN (tax ID) number is certain questions are asked. Sometimes
requested. At this stage Challenger 1 explains why information is also duplicated, for example at
this question is asked and provides a link for “what is your Dutch burgerservicenummer”, some
customers to achieve further information. additional text is placed at the bottom asking
“please provide your BSN”.
► Incumbent 4 used hyperlinks for additional
information, provided customer friendly
explanations about why certain pieces of
information were asked, for example “Switch on
notifications. Whatever happens in your account,
you’ll know about it”. Guidance showed value to
the customer and was conveyed in short, simple
language.
language
D3. Pre-filled
Reuse, reduce, recycle
When creating the onboarding The same applies for re-use of information. Any
information that has already been provided, or can be
process, try to limit the request for derived, should be used again where possible (perhaps
information. Asking for additional with additional confirmation by the customer to review
the information).
and unnecessary information may
create a point of friction and result
in abandonment.

language
D3. Pre-filled
The results
Table 19 – Heatmap on Pre-filled information for challengers and incumbents
For both challengers and incumbents there is room to Challenger 1

improve, especially by using all available technologies to Challenger 2
ease the entering of information and by considering the Challenger 3
order in which information is given. Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challengers tended to incorporate some elements ► Incumbent 1 utilized new technology to scan
to pre-fill information. information from a new Dutch license, however,
► All had a search function or utilized postcode + this was done relatively late in the process.
address to fill in the address. Challenger 1 used ► Two banks also required a full address to be typed
geo-location, which was the fastest way to fill in an in, instead of taking advantage of geo-location or
address. filling in postcode and house number.
► Most of the banks still requested the identification ► Incumbent 3 was the exception, requesting legal
step quite late, as information from the legal documents at the very first section of the
documents (name, date of birth) could have been onboarding process and re-using that information,
used earlier in the process. as well as deriving the residential address from a
postcode. The journey at Incumbent 3 was
therefore perceived to be shorter than at other
incumbent banks.
► Incumbent 4 also conducted the identity check at
the start of the process, but requested additional
details (such as expiry date of the passport). The
only information that was pre-filled was the legal
name and the date of birth.

language
D3. Pre-filled
EY Insights
► Take advantage of technology to retrieve
information easily – geo-location can help with
quickly retrieving a customer’s address and
information in newer Dutch passports and licenses
can be retrieved and validated using RFID. There
are many third-party vendors who can provide
solutions for each of these steps.
► Take time to consider the order of the customer
journey and what information will be provided at
each step and whether information is needed to be
provided at all. Completing the identification
process first and then pulling information from a
legal document is a good way to pre-fill the forms
required, however simply asking for a customer’s
name upfront can create a more personal feeling
between bank and customer.

language
D4. Customer friendly language

What’s good for the customer, is good for you
Banks have long been criticised for

using jargon, long, complex
sentences, academic language, and
a passive tone of voice. However,
over the past years banks have
focussed on simplifying and
modernizing their communication.
This is evident in the onboarding
journey. An area where are the
incumbents can still learn from the
challengers are the terms and
conditions.

language

The results
Table 20 – Heatmap on customer friendly language for challengers and incumbents
All challengers used short, modern, and customer Challenger 1

friendly language, while incumbents sometimes used a Challenger 2
mix of informal language and internally-driven jargon. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
Challengers
► Noticeably, all challengers used short, modern,
and customer friendly language.
► 3-4 challengers accompanied information with
supportive visuals.
► The area where there was still some variance was
terms and conditions.
► Challenger 3 and 4’s terms and conditions (T&C’s)
were customer-centric, free of jargon, short
sentences, and written in the active tense.
► Challenger 1’s terms and conditions were most
modern with conversational wording.
► Challenger 2’s T&Cs were least customer-centric
and could be considered the most traditional.

language

► Incumbent 1 uses informal and friendly language. ► Avoid jargon.
Sentences are relatively short and easy to ► Replace formal terminology with plain English
understand. Incumbent 1 adopts the less formal words.
“je” form. Some internal language is used at the
► Shorten sentences and use an active tone of voice.
start of the journey in the regular app, where the
prospect is asked to either register the device or ► Test readability with customers.
request a payment account. Even though the ► Don’t forget to modernize and simplify the terms
customer is welcomed, this is a process-focused, and conditions.
rather than people-focused and indicates some
complexity at the back-end.
► Incumbent 3 uses the formal “u” form. The
language generally is quite easy to understand.
► Incumbent 4 uses customer-friendly language,
avoiding jargon where possible and using the “je”
form to address customers. The only improvement
point is that it still contains a lot of text, as
opposed to the challengers which are designed as
“mobile first” and contain a single message per
screen.
► Incumbent 2 uses the most formal, old fashioned
language. Incumbent 2 uses the formal “u” form.
By way of example, at the start of the journey, a
user is requested to create a account and log-in.
Once they have confirmed their email, they are
redirected to a page which shows an overview of
“lopende aanvragen” or “requests which are in
process” The language and look & feel are more
reminiscent of an internally focused tool rather
than a customer experience.
► One area all incumbents could still improve upon
are the terms and conditions. These contain long,
academic sentences and jargon.

language
D5. Personalization
Tailored to fit
Every customer is unique. In order to truly personalize, companies need user

data and in the onboarding journey with prospects
Personalized and contextualized there is limited data to draw from. This doesn’t mean
user experiences are more that the onboarding experience can’t and shouldn’t be
personalized.
successful, engaging and “sticky.”
Each customer has their own The leading examples used information like name,
email, and phone number throughout the onboarding
motivations for choosing the product journey to increase connection.
and their own specific needs.
Modern technology allows A further method is to segment users based on the
data that has been collected previously, for example,
organizations to provide dynamic by introducing a tailored offering or providing the
content, language, and ability to set up a personalized plan.
recommendations based on
Last but not least, sending personalized emails
browsing behavior, demographics throughout the onboarding experience can foster trust
and a wide range of other factors. and can also be used to re-engage users who have not
completed the journey.

language
D5. Personalization
Tailored to fit
The results
Table 21 – Heatmap on Personalization for challengers and incumbents
Challengers are more focused on including personalized Challenger 1

content as opposed to incumbents. Challenger 2
Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 3 asks for a customer’s nickname ► Ask for name/roepnaam first. This enables you to
“roepnaam” up front and repeats this later in the use the name along the process and is a simple
journey. They also include a personalized reminder way to provide a more seamless experience.
for prospects who have not yet completed their ► Personalization does not stop at the digital
journey. experience – consider offering personalized debit
► Challenger 2 allows their customers to create their cards to empower the customer with creativity and
account on the desktop, but transfers customers make the bank product really seem like the
to the app to complete identification and customers own.
verification. Once transferred to the app, the user ► Using avatars, nicknames and allowing for
is already “logged in” and addressed by name. different app styles provides a sense of ownership
Challenger 2 also sends personalized emails to the customer.
throughout the onboarding journey and re-engages
customers to make a first payment.
► Challenger 1 allows customers to include a profile
picture or avatar, but does not use the customer’s
name in the confirmation email even though they
asked for it previously.
Incumbents
► Incumbent 1 asks for a “roepnaam”, which they
later use in confirmation emails, but not in the
onboarding journey itself
► Incumbent 2 addresses the customer as “beste
aanvrager” or “dear requestor”, while Incumbent 1
addresses the customer as “beste klant” in their
email communication.

E Expat
A. ONLINE
Findability Cross-
channel
experience
B. COMPLIANCE
phone
and verification
C. INNOVATION

reader
D. DIRECTION &
language
INTERNATIONAL
E. EXPAT Language BSN
Language BSN
E. Expat
Summary scorecard
Most expats will require banking services, and therefore provide key growth opportunities
for banks. However, not all customer experiences are built with the situation of a expat in
mind and not being able to onboard easily can be a frustrating part of a new phase in life.
These criteria examine onboarding through the lens of an expat.
Criteria 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Findability 3 2 1 1 2 1 3 2
Language 3 3 1 3 2 1 3 3
Verification 3 3 1 3 2 1 3 1
BSN 3 3 1 3 1 1 1 1

Language BSN
E1. Findability
Tailored to fit
While migration was limited in 2020, Expats may not know the full range (or even any) of
the banks that are active in the Netherlands. Given
CBS expects that, by 2070, 42 that increasingly more bank branches are closing
percent of people living the every year, it is imperative to have a strong online
presence in order to be front-of-mind for new
Netherlands will have a migration customers. We investigated online findability by
background, compared to 25 performing a web search on “banks expats
Netherlands” and taking a look at what was included in
percent at the end of 2020.1 These the top results. We also examined the landing web
expats require banking services and pages of each bank through the lens of an expat.
provide key growth opportunities for

banks. As such, we have examined
the onboarding journey from a
banking perspective from the lens of
an expat.
1. Statistics Netherlands, Forecast: Population growth unabated in the next 50 years <cbs.nl/en-gb/news/2020/51/forecast-
population-growth-unabated-in-the-next-50-years>. Published on 16-12-2020.
Language BSN
E1. Findability
Tailored to fit
The results
Table 22 – Heatmap on expat Findability for challengers and incumbents
Incumbents tended to rely on their long-standing brand to Challenger 1

draw in expats. Challenger 2
Challenger 3
Challengers took a more proactive approach and applied Challenger 4
targeted advertising to attract expats. Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1 and 2 were mentioned as viable ► All the incumbents were found on the lists of expat
banks in the Netherlands to start an account with banks found in each of the top 5 articles from our
on at least 4 out of the 5 top articles from our web search. However, only Incumbent 3 and
search. Challenger 3 and 4 were mentioned in only Incumbent 4 were mentioned specifically as a
one of the articles each. “best bank for expats” on one or more of the
► Challenger 1 has dedicated advertising on two of articles.
the articles found using our search terms. Key ► Incumbent 3 was often recommended as a good
points that they emphasise are the multi-language option in articles about expat banking. They seem
support and the speed and ease of setting up an to have adopted their identity as “expat bank”, as
account on a smartphone. Being a Dutch bank, their website appeared first in the web search. On
Challenger 1 also includes an expat specific section the expat specific page, they emphasise their
on their website. multi-language and other banking support.
► Challenger 2 has dedicated advertising on one of ► Most of the incumbents seemed to be geared
the articles found using our search terms. Key towards keeping current customers rather than
points that they emphasise are their benefits for diversifying. The option to open a bank account
travelling expats and ease of opening an account. was not easily found on English language pages.

Language BSN
E1. Findability
Tailored to fit
EY Insights
► Even if the bank is listed on expat specific websites
as part of a “major Dutch banks” list, having a
confusing bank homepage might discourage the
prospect from embarking on the onboarding
journey.
► Since looking at a banks website is likely one of the
first things a prospective customers will do, it is
important to have a navigable landing page, where
the prospect can be quickly guided to opening an
account in order to increase the chances to
complete the journey.
► Additional advertising on expat specific sites may
give expat prospects a sense of familiarity with the
bank, even if that might be subconscious, which
might entice the prospect to look for further
information about the bank.

Language BSN
E2. Language
English please
While many expats migrate to the

Netherlands and expect to learn
Dutch in due time, they generally
open up a bank account soon after
the move, at a time where they
might only know basic Dutch. Adding
a new language to the mix can cause
enough confusion and friction to
cause users to switch to a
competitor midway through a
journey.

Language BSN
E2. Language
English please
The results
Table 23 – Heatmap on Language for challengers and incumbents
Other than the bank that markets itself as an ideal choice Challenger 1
for expats, the available language choice for most Challenger 2
incumbents was limited to Dutch. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Challengers had more languages available, possibly to be Incumbent 1
able to cater to the wider European market. Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Most challengers use English throughout their ► We encourage banks to include translations at
onboarding journeys. Two challengers are based least of the landing page and the onboarding
outside of the Netherlands, so likely selected journey.
English as a default language to cater to their
wider European audience.
► Challenger 3 only uses Dutch, with no option to
swap to English.
Incumbents
► The landing page and the onboarding journeys of
two of the incumbents were completely in Dutch,
suggesting that their online onboarding process
was only catered towards Dutch prospects. This
was confirmed with the findings from the other
expat perspective metrics.
► For Incumbent 1, parts of the onboarding journey
were in English, but the majority was in Dutch
► Incumbents 3 and 4 offered an English onboarding
journey and landing page. It is likely for that
reason that one of these banks was chosen as the
recommended expat bank by Amsterdam’s
International Newcomer services.

Language BSN
E3. Verification
Who are you?
The identification and verification As a result, newly arrived expats might not be able to
onboard with the bank online, which might entice them
steps of these banks often include to search for alternatives.
matching against a legal personal
Another method of identification is to make a penny
document such as a passport. payment from another valid bank account in order to
However, there is a preference for verify against that account. However, this penny
payment is often made using iDEAL, a Dutch payment
Dutch legal documents as they are system made for Dutch banks, meaning that expat
more easily identifiable, causing users are unable to make the initial payment with
another overseas bank. This excludes expats from
many banks to exclude the option to onboarding online with the bank.
identify against overseas-based
documents in their onboarding
journeys.

Language BSN
E3. Verification
Who are you?
The results
Table 24 – Heatmap on expat verification for challengers and incumbents
All challengers allow the prospect to use an international Challenger 1

passport in order to onboard without any issue. Challenger 2
Challenger 3
There still seems to be some hesitance to onboard expats Challenger 4
digitally, especially by incumbent banks, as foreigners Incumbent 1
may be classified as higher risk for fraudulent activity. Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► All challengers allow the prospect to use an ► A penny payment via iDEAL may be used as a
international passport in order to onboard without verification option, however other options of
any issue. This is likely due to two of the banks verifying should be provided for expats and those
being European focused-banks rather than solely who do not have another bank account to make the
Dutch focused and one having a strong focus on payment against.
expats. ► Consider providing other digital options, such as a
► Challenger 3 included a penny payment as part of short video call option with an agent or creating a
their identification steps, excluding an expat short video to identify.
without access to a Dutch bank account in ► There seems to be some hesitance to onboard
proceeding further with the onboarding journey. expats digitally, especially by incumbent banks.
This could be because they tend to be classified as
Incumbents higher risk for fraudulent activity or because this
has not yet been an area of focus.
► Incumbent 3 was the only digital onboarding
► However, with there being less physical banks even
journey that made it possible to onboard with an
in cities with a high volume of expats, it is
international passport.
becoming less possible to conveniently visit a
► Incumbent 2 required a penny payment from branch. It is better to add some additional
iDEAL, further restricting access to the expat to questions/steps for expats to mitigate risk, rather
onboarding. than attempting to redirect to a physical branch
► Incumbent 1, 3, and 4 directed the user to go into and potentially losing the customer to a channel
a branch after identifying with foreign switch.
identification and ended the digital onboarding
journey.
► Incumbent 1 allowed customers to onboard with a
Dutch drivers license, which a new expat might
already have. International passports cannot be
processed.

Language BSN
E4. BSN
One of life’s two certainties
A burgerservicenummer (BSN) is a Since a BSN can only be applied for after registering at
a residence, this prevents an expat from opening an
citizens number that all Dutch tax account before they move or while they are house
citizens or residents must have. hunting. However, expats may prefer to join a Dutch
bank prior to finding a residence. Offering the
Banks are required to pass a BSN possibility to onboard earlier helps the expat customer
along to the tax authority for their to reduce the stress of all the administration from
moving countries and may provide favorable image to
customers who are required to pay their customer.
tax in the Netherlands.

Language BSN
E4. BSN
One of life’s two certainties
The results
Table 25 – Heatmap on BSN for challengers and incumbents
A BSN had to be provided for almost all challengers and Challenger 1

incumbents, however there was a difference in how they Challenger 2
chose to ask for it. Challenger 3
Challenger 4
Incumbent 1
Incumbent 2
Incumbent 3
Incumbent 4
► Challenger 1, a Dutch bank, emphasized as part of ► Moving to another country is stressful and requires
their expat offering that a BSN was not required at a lot of administration. Most expats will want to do
the initial point of signing up, and could be as much as they can to prepare for their journey
provided later on once it is received. before they land, so banks should tailor their
► Challenger 2 and 4 did not require a BSN at any onboarding experience to anticipate this need.
point of the journey given that they were banks ► If the option to identify with foreign documents is
based in wider Europe. Where required, this given, the option to delay entering a BSN until
information is collected at a later stage. later is a small but impactful change to cater to
expat customers.
Incumbents ► Providing guidance text with the BSN field can also
be helpful to explain why it is required in the
► All the incumbents required a BSN to be provided Netherlands.
upfront, however most of the incumbents also only
allowed customers to identify with Dutch
identification documents, where a BSN is required
to possess one of these documents.

04
Recommendations
It is encouraging that all organizations
in the scope of this research have
invested in creating digital onboarding
journeys. There remain a number of
banks in the Netherlands who still
need to take this leap.
We have witnessed many promising innovations

from incumbent banks, who have adopted simple,
customer-centric language and have created
relatively short onboarding journeys.
That said, there is always room for improvement.

Incumbents can and should take inspiration from
challengers, who are leading in areas such as
simplicity, contextual direction and UX/UI which
really allows them to stand out from the crowd.
However, both challengers and incumbents are and

will be faced with serving a customer segment who
are less digitally capable. There are significant
opportunities by providing services for users who
need extra help.
We have made a series of recommendations aimed

at challengers as well as incumbents.

A Key findings
Online usability
The key tenet of successful online usability involves optimization
of landing pages on websites, increasing conversion by showing
value to prospects and clear prompts or calls to action and a
seamless transition to the app.
Incumbents Incumbents and challengers
Optimize the landing

1 page 4 Be (tech) inclusive
► Optimize the landing page by ► Given the shift away from branches,
showing value to prospective we expect there will be more
customers to increase motivation customer groups who do not have
and include a clear call to action to access to the latest technology
commence the journey. going online.
► Channel shifts should be as ► Leverage digital experience
seamless as possible. guidelines to make the experience
more accessible for all users
2 Show value first

► Don’t overload prospects with
5 Channel strategize
► Deploy a channel strategy to ensure
unnecessary product or process prospects have an integrated,
focused information, but use the seamless customer experience.
opportunity to provide a first
glimpse into the unique selling
proposition.
3 Welcome prospects
► Prospects should feel welcome and
6 Inform up front
► Prepare prospects with some key
encouraged to complete the pieces of information they need to
onboarding process. Personalized, have at hand before they begin.
warm inviting language creates the
feeling they have already joined the
bank.

B Key findings
Compliance and Security
Customers still carry a sense of mistrust of online financial online

services. Assure them with contextual messaging, seek approval
and provide explanations. Technology can and should be leveraged
to provide increased security and a seamless experience.
1 Identify early
► Identification should ideally occur
4 Strength in numbers
► Provide suitable options of
early in the process in order to identification to meet customers
recognize any issues, enable reuse needs. Request for multiple forms
of information and to allow of identification or include a video
personalization and segmentation. call for prospects in a higher risk
category.
2 No complex username
► Customers have more than one
5 Geo-locate for speed
► Speed and convenience is critical in
organization to worry about. Asking onboarding. Don’t underestimate
for a custom-username risks a time the value of expediting this process,
consuming re-set process. through enabling geolocation or
even finding the address. Geo-
location is also a useful verification
point to confirm prospects are
where they say they are.
3 Verify email and phone

6 Protect the pin code
► As technology advances, so do
► A balance must be struck between criminals. Leverage technology to
security and convenience, but we prevent hackers from capturing pin
consider asking for email or phone codes via screen recording.
verification is a worthwhile ► Those organizations using
measure. passwords should update their
password policy to align to the
latest NIST guidance.

C Key findings
Innovation
It is exciting to see both incumbents and challengers embrace the

opportunities of digital and technology, ranging from the uptake in
third party identification software to re-imaging the flow of the
journey. Further gains can be made on UX/UI and gamification.
1 Celebrate progress
► Adding milestones should always be
4 Gamify
► Consider human psychology as part
considered as they can be beneficial of UX design. Many users already
for customer engagement in almost have an ingrained idea on general
every journey - even adding a simple app usage and icon meanings, so
progress bar or positive feedback take advantage of this when
can produce a sense of ownership in designing the app.
the customer and further
engagement with the digital
journey.
2 Appear open
► If a customer is unsure about when
5 Ask for feedback
► Not all challengers or incumbents
an account is available, generally provided the ability for customers to
they will wait until a card arrives to provide feedback. This is a lost
start using their account. opportunity to identify improvement
► Ensure that there is some notice points and increase the ability (and
given to a customer if the account is motivation) to improve the
actually available earlier than when onboarding journey
the card arrives.
3 Invest in UX/UI
► There are more gains to be achieved
6 Show your dashboard
► Provide an option for prospects to
for incumbents on the topic of UX keep themselves signed in on their
and UI. This is an important first personal devices.
impression, so it should reflect the
brand. Are you a modern bank?
Show the customer through modern
choices in visual display.

D Key findings
Communication and information
While both incumbents and challengers have generally focused on

modernizing their communication, there isn’t sufficient re-use of
data, personalization and modern support options readily
available during the onboarding experience.
1 Avoid jargon
► Replace formal terminology with
4 Truly personalize
► Personalization does not stop at the
normal words, shorten sentences digital experience. Consider offering
and use an active tone of voice personalized debit cards to make
the bank product really seem like
something the customers own.
2 Test with customers

► Test readability with customers, and
5 Modernize T&Cs
► Modernize and simplify terms and
ensure that there is a shared conditions
understanding of what is required at
each step.
3 Reuse customer data

► Take time to consider the order of
6 Human chatbots
► Invest in an in-app support model,
the customer journey and what like Natural Language Processing
information will be provided at each (NLP) chatbots to provide and
step, what information can be re- empathetic and human response to
used. Addressing a customer by common onboarding issues faced.
their first name can create a more
personal feeling between bank and
customer.

E Key findings
Expats
While migration was limited in 2020, CBS expects that, by 2070,

42 percent of people living the Netherlands will have a migration
background, compared to 25 percent at the end of 2020.1 These
expats require banking services and provide key growth
opportunities for banks.
1 ►
Translate key pages
Providing a multi-language
4 Declutter landing page
► Even if the bank is listed on expat
onboarding journey and a support specific websites as part of a “major
option creates an opening for Dutch banks” list, having a
expats to onboard with the bank and confusing bank homepage might
is a good area to start with making discourage the prospect from
the digital experience more onboarding.
inclusive. ► Provide direction to where to sign
up for an account with as little
friction as possible.
2 ►
Identify without borders
Consider whether the mandatory
5 Advertise
► Additional advertising on expat
identification options allow for specific sites may give expat
expats to complete the journey prospects a sense of familiarity with
(Dutch passport only, iDEAL the bank, even if that might be
payments) and consider providing subconscious, which might entice
alternative options. the prospect to look for further
information about the bank.
Reduce risk, but without a

3 ►
Delay BSN
Allowing expat customers to delay
6 channel switch
► Adding some additional steps, for
providing their BSN until later can example video identification, for
be a small but impactful change. expats to complete to mitigate risk
of fraudulent activity is better than
attempting to redirect to a physical
branch (and potentially losing the
customer).
1. Statistics Netherlands, Forecast: Population growth unabated in the next 50 years <cbs.nl/en-gb/news/2020/51/forecast-
population-growth-unabated-in-the-next-50-years>. Published on 16-12-2020.
05
Future trends
Future trends
The digital onboarding experience has changed significantly in the

past few decades and we expect to see the pace of change
continue and even accelerate. What will onboarding look like for
customers in another five years’ time?
Gradual engagement
1
► Gradual engagement allows users to interact with an app and
understand the benefits prior to making a commitment. We
expect to see more banks to make use of this approach, in
conjunction with an instructional overlay to truly “onboard”
users and familiarize them with the features.
No more user names
2
► Usernames are becoming a thing of the past. We believe this
trend will continue in the coming years.
► Secure biometric verification methods, such as face scans and
hand scans can provide additional assurance and verification.
No more passwords
3
► Passwords are being replaced with pin codes and other
biometric information. As the smartphone capability changes,
so will banks. We foresee further development in this field, for
example through e-IDs, retina or other identification methods.
Gamification
4
► We expect banks and challengers will further leverage
gamification techniques to draw customers in. We expect
these will be increasingly tailored to customer personas and
levels of digital literacy.

Future trends
We believe that there are significant strides which will be taken in

the application, use of technology, cyber-security and anti-money
laundering. We also predict that increased customer support will
be provided by empathetic AI-driven chatbots.
No more card readers
5
► With mobile banking becoming increasingly the norm, we
predict the incumbents will roll out a strategy in the future to
replace card readers with in-app authentication methods.
Rise of third party FinTech vendors
6
► Third party vendors already are utilized to provide high
quality, robust, and regulated digital identification solutions
We see this trend increasing, with specialized vendors not just
providing OCR capabilities or initiating short video calls with
human agents to confirm identity, but extending their AI and
NLP capabilities to reimagine the CDD process.
Financial ID
7
► We expect to see significant developments in the near future
of customer onboarding as it relates to identification will be an
interesting topic to stay abreast. There has been long talk of a
financial ID which could be linked to physical biometrics.
Empathetic AI-driven chatbots
8
► We predict challengers and banks will invest in infusing
empathetic AI-driven chatbots in the onboarding experience to
provide additional guidance and support throughout the
onboarding experience. Such a chatbot would also take the
lead in the onboarding experience in a conversational style.

Contact us
Menno Bonninga Kate van Lamoen

Partner | EY Advisory Senior Manager | EY Advisory United
Netherlands LLP Kingdom LLP
menno.bonninga@nl.ey.com kate.vanlamoen@uk.ey.com
Bram van Sunder Wouter van Groen

Partner | EY Advisory Senior Manager | EY Advisory
Netherlands LLP Netherlands LLP
bram.van.sunder@nl.ey.com wouter.van.groen@nl.ey.com
Paul van der Waaij Minh Pham

Partner | EY Advisory Senior Consultant | EY Advisory
paul.van.der.waaij@nl.ey.com minh.pham@nl.ey.com
Tony de Bos Paul Vernooij

Partner | EY Advisory Senior Consultant | EY Advisory
tony.de.Bos@nl.ey.com paul.vernooij@nl.ey.com
Zeynep Deldag Boaz Burkunk

Partner | EY Advisory Senior Consultant | EY VODW B.V.
Netherlands LLP boaz.burkunk@nl.ey.com
zeynep.deldag@nl.ey.com
Reinier Plantinga Bernadette Wesdorp

Director | EY Advisory Senior Manager | EY Advisory
reinier.plantinga@nl.ey.com bernadette.wesdorp@nl.ey.com
Marcel Jak Mérien Voorboom

Senior Manager | EY Advisory Lawyer | HVG Law LLP
Netherlands LLP merien.voorboom@nl.ey.com
marcel.jak@nl.ey.com
Lysanne Jurjens Tom Hoogervorst

Senior Manager | EY Advisory Senior Consultant | EY Advisory
lysanne.jurjens@nl.ey.com tom.hoogervorst@nl.ey.com

EY | Assurance | Tax | Strategy and Transactions | Consulting
About EY
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© 2020 Ernst & Young Netherlands LLP. Published in the Netherlands.

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Reimagining

A message from EY Consulting

The Incumbent banks must adapt to an online-only future, while

Page 2 | Reimagining the customer onboarding experience

Paul van der Waaij Tony de Bos

Zeynep Deldag Reinier Plantinga

Page 3 | Reimagining the customer onboarding experience

02 Context, background, and framework 9

Page 4 | Reimagining the customer onboarding experience

Seamless, modern, and secure customer Dutch customers using online

We have investigated online onboarding

The onboarding experiences have been

We have made a series of recommendations Banks have not yet brought

1. Trustly, The state of online banking, 2017 <http://thestateofonlinebanking.com/>

It is encouraging that all However, there are also some

Incumbents can and should take inspiration

Table 1 – Heatmap of the onboarding findings for challengers and incumbents 1

A. Online B. Compliance C. Innovation D. Direction & E. The expat F. Total

Managed & Managed &

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Compliance and security

Direction & customization

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Customer onboarding has long been Context

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We have organized key findings in a consistent manner, providing a description, the

2 Description of criteria, challenges,

In order to provide a comprehensive and fact-based perspective, we have investigated the

Milestones Card Speed UX / UI

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1. Trustly, The state of online banking, 2017 <http://thestateofonlinebanking.com/>

Milestones Card Speed UX / UI

Score definition Leading Lagging

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Table 2 – Heatmap on findability for challengers and banks

Challengers are growth-oriented. They are focused on Challenger 1

Maturity level Initial Defined Optimized

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Table 3 – Heatmap on Orientation for challengers and incumbents

Challengers highlight their features and are more likely to Challenger 1

Maturity level Initial Defined Optimized

Challengers postponement of the registration progress as long

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A3. Cross-channel experience

convenience. As a standard rule of However, prospects who do not have access to an

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A3. Cross-channel experience

Table 4 – Heatmap on Cross-channel experience for challengers and incumbents

All challengers require prospects to onboard via their app Challenger 1

Maturity level Initial Defined Optimized

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A3. Cross-channel experience

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