Awards for Excellence 2018
The award for Africa’s best digital bank is, happily, an increasingly competitive one, as banks invest a lot of money and energy in innovative products for clients who have ever-greater access to mobile and internet technology, and an ever-decreasing willingness to travel to a bank branch.
Despite fierce competition, one bank stood out in the last year for the inventiveness of its efforts in this area: United Bank for Africa.
One of its signature launches in Nigeria in January this year was Leo, an e-chat service using artificial intelligence to help customers execute transactions on Facebook. Facebook’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, gave a nod to the service during a talk at a recent developers’ conference – a sign of its recognition at the highest levels of digital technology.
With Leo, UBA’s clients can open new accounts, receive instant transaction notifications, check their balances on the go, transfer funds and top up airtime. They can also confirm cheques, pay bills, apply for loans, freeze accounts, ask for mini statements and even check the weather.