Bankinter develops an instantaneous system of notifications and alerts through Apple Watch

Bankinter has developed a new system of a two-way relationship with its customers via the Apple Watch, the smartphone that Apple will release commercially in Spain in the coming weeks. This benchmark application in Spain will enable Bankinter customers to receive real-time informative notifications and alerts on these smart devices regarding all the charges and payments that are made with their accounts and credit cards; notifications on international charges or on deposit returns, as well as detailed information on the progression of their equity investments (securities, warrants, ETFs, etc). The new system also enables credit cards to be cancelled from the watch in the event of loss or theft.

Thanks to this new solution, developed by Gneis, the technological and operational subsidiary of Bankinter, and Inteligenz, customers of the company will be able to see on their watch any credit card transaction that takes place at the very moment the payment is made, with information regarding the shop, the accurate time and the transaction amount in euros; the latter detail is of special significance, particularly regarding transactions made in a different currency.

The incorporation of a device so visual and accessible, such is the Apple Watch, into the relationship of Bankinter with its customers constitutes, according to Rubén Muñoz, Managing Director of Gneis, "a provision of greater agility to communications, improved turnaround times of any contingency and, ultimately, an increase in customer security, since the system offers them the option to immediately block a card, preventing the transaction if the client believes that a certain transaction is incorrect or fraudulent".

These new operations constitute an expansion in the possibilities of mobile banking, a field in which Bankinter set the benchmark for Spain, making way for a new line of devices, of which smartwatches are one such derivative, that are more and more widespread throughout society and with increasing growth prospects. Along these lines, Bankinter already launched a similar application at the end of 2014 for smartwatches that use the Android operating system, and its subsidiary, Gneis, is already working on the development of new banking functions surrounding this technology.

The emergence of wearables, and specifically smartwatches, which according to various studies will experience an exponential growth in the coming decade, opens up a huge world of possibilities for our day-to-day life, which will include different value propositions of a financial nature that will improve the access to the customer's information, the way they interact with the bank and, ultimately, their quality of life.