During the pandemictechnology was the strategic ally of the microfinance sector to maintain service flows prepandemic and, therefore, an optimal level of placements in a complex economic and health context. Consequently, the industry microfinance faced a series of challenges not only to incorporate digitalization, but also not to lose proximity to its customers.
This and other aspects were addressed at the International Microfinance Seminar “Humanizing digital transformation” – SIM Arequipa 2022, organized by the Peruvian Federation of Municipal Savings and Credit Banks (FEPCMAC) and Caja Arequipa.
“The service dynamics of the microfinance sector depends to a great extent on face-to-face transactions in an agency, so during 2021 microfinance institutions innovated with digital solutions to be able to be close to their clients, investing 20% more in relation to previous years. Said investments were concentrated in technological solutions for services in the Cloud, Information Security and Digitization of Banking. In this way, it was possible to maintain and optimize its operations with efficiency and security, giving its clients the possibility of generating different types of financial operations”, explains José Olaechea, Commercial Manager of Public Administration and Zones of Movistar Empresas, one of the companies that participated in the SIM Arequipa 2022.
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For February 2022, the municipal savings banks reported a higher level of placements (S/ 29.64 billion) compared to February 2021 (S/ 26.50 billion), which represented a growth of 11.85% somewhat which, according to specialists, responds to strategies to close the bureaucratic gap -compared to traditional banking- and to the incorporation of digital solutions in its processes.
According to the Digital Adoption 2021 study carried out by Telefónica B2B Hispam, 60% of microfinance institutions prioritize projects that improve the customer experience and 85% incorporate security as a fundamental component in these initiatives. “In this new stage of recovery of the economy, savings banks have digitization with value as their focus, where their main challenges are: increasing their efficiency and scope; provide financial services that are more accessible and appropriate to the needs of its customers and; improve the experience of access and use of technological products and services. For this reason, we make our global capabilities available to the sector with a local presence to accompany them on their path to digital transformation and the adoption of cloud services with the necessary security levels for the core of their business”, says Olaechea.
Overview of microfinance digitization
The Municipal Savings Bank system has been evolving through the incorporation of technology, with the purpose of becoming a multi-platform Fintech, with agile processes compared to traditional banking. However, the migration of financial institutions to the cloud, without adequate advice, can cause vulnerabilities to cyber attacks. Given this, the Superintendence of Banking and Insurance of Peru (SBS) issued a regulation so that the information of the users of the financial system is duly supported and protected against cyber attacks.
To achieve this, the specialist highlights that the municipal savings bank sector requires a strategic ally in digital transformation that advises and guides them in the implementation of cybersecurity solutions and migration to the cloud, so that they can concentrate their efforts on their core business. business, microfinance. “This is the value that Movistar Empresas offers to the sector, where we make ad hoc solutions available to microfinance institutions to meet their needs, hand in hand with Telefónica Tech, the division specializing in digital solutions, who have the best specialists in the field. “, it states.
Finally, with the aim of accompanying the microfinance sector in its digital transformation, ensuring regulatory compliance with international certifications and as the main partner of one of the largest correspondent networks in the country, Movistar Empresas presented itself at SIM 2022 in Arequipa with a wide and varied range of value-added solutions and services, among which the following stand out: correspondent agents, SD-WAN, Journey to Cloud, Cybersecurity and Smart Steps, a solution based on Big Data that allows gathering insights and identifying trends among the users of an entity , thus helping to optimize your value proposition.
“At Movistar Empresas we are able to provide comprehensive end-to-end transaction processing services, from the moment the transaction is captured to its authorization and all supported by a required information system (BackOffice). Likewise, we provide a digital channel (POS) that delivers services through our own applications or those of third parties such as banks, Fintech, processors, among others. These types of solutions are essential for audits, proposing improvements, centralizing data and continuing to grow in the segment”, indicates the specialist.
