App-Driven World Requires Bankers Be Open to a Little SaaS

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Laptops, smartphones, tablet devices… it’s a connected services world with people wanting to bank anytime, anywhere and on any device. In an app-hungry world, meeting that demand can be a technological challenge for bankers. Fortunately they can now get a little help from Intuit (Nasdaq:INTU).

“People already use technology to get and create personalized experiences across their lives; we update our own profiles, mix our own music and decide which third-party apps we want to download”

Today, Intuit Financial Services announced its new online and mobile software-as-a-service platform that provides financial institutions more flexibility to meet their customers’ needs. The new platform will enable Intuit’s more than 1,250 customer financial institutions to seamlessly incorporate solutions created by third-party developers or bankers themselves via application programming interfaces, or APIs. Some Intuit customer financial institutions have already taken advantage of this capability by integrating small business solutions, third-party investment brokerage services or bank-built mobile apps to their digital banking experience.

In addition to supporting more third-party solutions, Intuit’s new banking platform provides financial institutions with:

Segment-specific capabilities to personalize a customer’s experience and deliver insights to help him or her save money.
Improved navigation so people can complete banking tasks quickly and easily.
Robust and flexible branding capabilities.
Improved authentication, resulting in stronger yet easy-to-use security measures.
Dynamic speed to market.

“This isn’t the static SaaS of years ago,” said Al Ko, vice president of product management for Intuit Financial Services. “Between our wealth of data and a platform that’s able to seamlessly include third-party contributions, we’ll be making the experience better and better for consumers and small businesses while they sleep. This gives Intuit financial institutions the technological flexibility they need to achieve higher customer engagement.”

Intuit data shows that customers now interact with their financial institution via the digital branch more than any other way. A recent Intuit internal study showed that Intuit’s financial institutions’ online customers interact with their financial institution’s website approximately 10 times per month. When mobile is added, users interact roughly 19 times per month. And, those who access using online banking, mobile banking and tablet banking access their accounts approximately 30 times per month.

“People already use technology to get and create personalized experiences across their lives; we update our own profiles, mix our own music and decide which third-party apps we want to download,” said CeCe Morken, senior vice president and general manager of Intuit Financial Services. “Banking should be just as accomodating. Yet no one provider can solve every problem for every person by itself. Opening up empowers a financial institution to incorporate the contributions of others, solve a wider array of specific customer challenges and, ultimately, delight those they serve.”

The need for banking platforms to be open and foster innovation is one of many topics to be discussed by Brad Smith, Intuit president and chief executive officer, during the FinTech President & CEO Panel “Technology Trends Transforming the Industry,” at BAI Retail Delivery 2012 on Oct. 10.

Suggested Links:

Learn more banking insights at Banking.com.

Follow Intuit Financial Services at FinanceWorks on Twitter.

Hear more about Intuit’s connected services strategy on the Intuit Network.

About Intuit Inc.

Intuit Inc. is a leading provider of business and financial management solutions for small and mid-sized businesses; financial institutions, including banks and credit unions; consumers and accounting professionals. Its flagship products and services, including QuickBooks®, Quicken® and TurboTax®, simplify small business management and payroll processing, personal finance, and tax preparation and filing. ProSeries® and Lacerte® are Intuit’s leading tax preparation offerings for professional accountants. Intuit Financial Services helps banks and credit unions grow by offering innovative online and mobile banking solutions that make it easier for consumers and businesses to manage their money.

Founded in 1983, Intuit had annual revenue of $4.15 billion in its fiscal year 2012. The company has approximately 8,000 employees with major offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India and other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.

About Intuit Financial Services

Intuit Financial Services helps banks and credit unions grow by offering innovative online and mobile banking solutions that make it easier for consumers and businesses to manage their money. Applying more than three decades of customer insights and innovation to design its products, Intuit provides solutions that help financial institutions achieve higher customer engagement and profitability. Learn more at www.ifs.intuit.com.

Intuit and the Intuit logo, are registered trademarks and/or registered service marks of Intuit Inc. in the United States and other countries. Other parties’ trademarks or service marks are the property of their respective owners and should be treated as such.