The economic context of 2020 was more complex than usual. The pandemic had a global impact on world economies. Throughout the year, domestic authorities took measures to alleviate the effect of the health crisis on the economy.
In the exceptional situation resulting from the pandemic in 2020, Bankinter focused its efforts on being on the side of its customers, to understand and respond flexibly to their needs, helping them to face the effects of the health crises on their businesses, normal operations and investments.
To this end, communication and contact were promoted through all commercial networks (in person or through working remotely, they managed to maintain their level of service), and telephone banking (quickly adapted to the new situation, with a significant increase in the volume of calls and emails handled)
In digital banking, all of Bankinter's websites and applications worked fully and properly and enabled the Bank to respond to the increase in customer inquiries and operations. Processes were streamlined and adapted (digital signature, financing, etc.) and numerous measures were implemented in accordance with customer demands (e.g. new products, flexibility and improvement of conditions).
All this effort translated into significant growth in customer satisfaction with the Bank. The aggregate global index of perceived quality in Spain and Portugal, measured through the Net Promoter Score (NPS), reached 41.5% in 2020 (6.7% more than the previous year). In Spain, it stood at 42.1% (+7.1%) and in Portugal, at 34.4% (+20.7%).
The recommendation index (customers who would recommend the Bank to other people) was 51.7% (+ 3.8%) in Spain and 47.3% (+6.5%) in Portugal, while the percentage of dissatisfied customers dropped to 9.7% (-7.6%) and 12.9% (-18.4%), respectively.
Digital channels (websites and apps) presented the highest satisfaction increases (+9.4% in Spain and +9.3% Portugal), although telephone banking and the branch network also scored very high recommendation.
In 2020, 22 processes in the Bank's websites and apps were measured (+37.5% compared to a year ago), with a view to obtaining information for improving the design, functionality and operation of the applications. The platforms and websites were rated higher than in 2019, reaching an aggregate NPS of 44.4% (+9.4%).
In Spain, highlights include the increase in the appreciation of the website (+28.3%) and the high recommendation levels for the remote signature process. Bankinter Portugal also achieved high levels of recommendation from its customers for the individual retail banking website (+11.5%) and mobile banking (+11%).
The Process Transformation area measured 72 processes in real time to understand and optimise our employees' experience. The Net Satisfaction Score (NSS) stood at an excellent 71.2% (+20% compared to the previous year).
Following the declaration of the state of emergency, the Bank's central services made a commendable deployment during 2020, in order to equip the network with the necessary tools to provide the best possible service. Facilities were adapted; the information and support to those responsible for advising customers was redoubled; the processes related to ICO loans were streamlined and made more flexible; and the essential technological support was provided to make teleworking a reality.
In 2020, 109 internal quality measurements were carried out, with thousands of opinions and suggestions. A total of 118 initiatives were developed, with a focus on processes and their digitilisation, information for customers and employees, support and advice to commercial networks, product improvement and the development of new products, and the promotion of communication, service and training for internal customers.
As a result, the degree of satisfaction with central services remained on a very positive trend, increasing by 23% in Spain over the previous year. In Portugal, it rose to 30.9% (+18%), after measures taken primarily in three fields: communication between areas, closeness to people and other areas, and the simplification of internal processes through digitilisation.
The EQUOS RCB annual study, carried out by an independent company, assesses the service provided by the main financial institutions using the mystery shopping technique. Bankinter performed positively one more year, particularly as regards the time spent with customers, the knowledge of their needs and the explanation of the products. Bankinter Portugal maintained its leadership consistently among a total of 15 banks and 6,962 bank branches analysed. Its score is over 10 points higher than the market average, particularly in relation to its improvement in global customer service.
For 2021, the Quality area has set the following challenges: expanding the measurement of digital banking and operations processes, continuing to digitalise internal processes, implementing a predictive quality model in the commercial network, improving management information for all areas of the Bank, and supporting business centres with low NPS levels.
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