Despite reports of slow user adoption of Meta’s Horizon Worlds virtual reality platform, the metaverse holds great promise as a place where people and organizations interact in the future .
As revolutionary as the metaverse sounds, it’s just the latest evolution of the internet. And just as human interaction, consumer behavior and organizational strategies and services are adapted to new technologies, so will they adapt and embrace the metaverse as it expands. . Those technologies include cloud computing, distributed networks, augmented and virtual reality, blockchain, edge computing and more that can support shared metaverse experiences.
For financial institutions, the metaverse is a new realm for developing new products and services with significant growth potential. JPMorgan Chase expects a market opportunity of $1 trillion per year in the coming years.
As the metaverse industry and population grows, people seek to engage in transactions such as buying and selling images, avatars, names and other assets, e.g. demand for banking and financial services continues. There will be growing opportunities for financial institutions to offer payments, investments, loans, mortgages and insurance in the metaverse.
Major financial institutions are developing a presence in the metaverse. Indeed, large banks can play an important role in the trading metaverse through their expertise in cross-border payments, foreign exchange, and the creation, trading and management of financial assets.
Credit unions and community banks can thrive in the metaverse by leveraging what they do best in the physical world: Build trusting relationships with the community and differentiate themselves through personal information.
Companies can use the metaverse to enhance their brands by presenting their business, industry, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) values in ways that are thoughtful and memorable. create close relationships with their customers. Early adopters can have a huge advantage, especially among more digitally savvy consumers and communities that thrive in the metaverse.
Here are some policies and practices to help financial institutions prepare so they can build and maintain a customer base in the metaverse:
Promote ethics and integration: The metaverse will separate access to products, services and job openings. However, regulation and governance in the metaverse is still in its embryonic stages, so financial institutions have a greater responsibility to ensure access and financial security of their customers. Those banks that demonstrate ethics and inclusivity at the core of their metaverse operations will gain respect, trust and brand distinction.
As the metaverse expands, we must consider a digital sector that may expand. One way for financial institutions to participate is to provide access to real-time information to members, especially those in low-income communities or remote areas. Although the metaverse can be accessed through smartphones, VR headsets often provide a powerful experience that can improve the level of service.
Start the experiment now: Organizations can use virtual reality to simulate customer situations when training support staff. In addition, immersive environments can be a great tool to put new remote workers to work in conditions that meet company values and culture. Bank of America has already used virtual reality to train employees at nearly 4,300 of its financial centers.
Establish privacy and identity verification: To ensure safe interactions and transactions in the metaverse, user information and privacy protections are of utmost importance. Financial institutions that are constantly improving their security protocols and using emerging and new technologies, such as voice biometrics for accurate identification, will be better prepared to accept the new wave of security measures needed in the metaverse.
Tie your metaverse strategy to your CX strategy: Financial institutions are transforming their customer experience strategies in response to changing customer expectations for seamless communications across channels, especially digital-first experiences and with smart self-service options. The metaverse will show further change in customer needs and expectations, so companies should build their metaverse strategy with CX at its core.
The metaverse is still in its infancy, and there are issues around interoperability standards and secure sharing of customer data across platforms and ecosystems. Similarly, it is not known how the banking rules will be applied in the metaverse. However, financial institutions that fail to prepare for the metaverse will run out of money last fall.
Bhavana Rana he is head of financial services and insurance at Talkdesk.