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Atom deal shows gamification in banking is on the way, says expert


Banks are likely to embrace 'gamification' as a means of better engaging people with financial products and a savings culture, an expert has said.

Financial services and technology expert Yvonne Dunn of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said digital challenger bank Atom's acquisition of IT development and gaming business Grasp could be the first of many similar deals in the banking sector.

In a statement released by Atom earlier this week Brian Jobling, Atom's new business development director and former owner of Graso, said the new merged companies would look to "create a seamless and engaging user interface experience that will be appreciated by Atom’s customers".

Dunn said that there are "clear examples" of how gamification could enhance the banking experience.

"Banks can look to the buzz that has surrounded fitness technology for encouragement in relation to how to gamify the customer experience," Dunn said. "Fitness technology has allowed people to measure things like how many steps they take, how much sleep they are getting and how they exercise and is used by many as a motivational tool to get healthier or improve performance."

"These concepts translate into the financial services world. For example, banks gamify the customer-facing tools to enhance customers' understanding of their own financial health and allow them to monitor progress towards personlised savings targets, among other examples. Gamification could also be used as an educational tool to inform people about financial products, and therefore go some way to meeting regulatory compliance obligations on things like risk disclosures," she said.

Dunn said that there is a broad view across the industry that banks are better to engage "people that live and breathe gaming" than try to gamify the customer experience themselves. She said that it looked like Atom had followed that advice.

Banks should be aware of legal issues around data collection and privacy in particular if they are looking to embrace gamification.

"Banks would have to ensure that customers understand what data of their is being collected as part of the 'game' and what the bank will use it for," Dunn said. "Banks should also recognise that there might be acute sensitivity and reluctance from customers to the sharing of their financial information with others – while people might be happy to share their Fitbit stats with their friends they may be less willing to share their latest bank balance statistics."

Dunn also said that regulatory disclaimers may be necessary if customers could construe games as the provision of personal recommendations or financial advice.

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