October 31, 2022
Connecting the dots with Nicola Dalmazzo, from Google Maps Platform
In this series of interviews conducted by the CEO and Founder of Snowdrop Solutions, Ken Hart, we are joined by our guest, Nicola Dalmazzo, to discuss the current state of digital banking, and explore ideas around the current trends and new technologies that are significant in the financial industry, especially around the user experience.
Part I: ‘Why User Experience is Key in Digital Banking’
We are privileged to start our series with Nicola Dalmazzo, EMEA Head of Financial Services Sector at Google Maps Platform. In the first part of our interview, we talk about the current state of digital banking in different regions, from EMEA to Asia Pacific. It should be noted that in Europe, Fintechs arose out of necessity, reacting to an era when financial institutions were not able to meet new market conditions.
Ken and Nicola provide some insights into how traditional banks can adapt to market trends quickly: why a compelling user experience is a must-have and not a nice-to-have.
In this regard, at Snowdrop Solutions, we are experts in transaction data enrichment in the banking sector and we have developed a very easy-to-implement API: Merchant Reconciliation System, which boosts the user experience and also has significant cost reductions for financial institutions.
Ken Hart then shares his experience with Challenger banks in the UK, and how the benchmark was defined for better user experience.
Later, Nicola Dalmazzo paints a picture of the partnership between Snowdrop Solutions and Google Maps and talks about the importance of Data in digital banking and how to use it in an engaging way.
Ken Hart introduces some of the advantages of the Merchant Reconciliation System, not only for users but also for banks: in particular, how to do your business in a smarter way. This will be expanded on in part 2 of the interview.
Part II: ‘Benefits of Enriched Transactions and Location’
Following on, in part 2 Ken and Nicola take a deep dive into real examples of banks that have implemented the ‘Merchant Reconciliation System’ API. Here, the detailed benefits of integrating Transaction Enrichment services using underlying Google Maps technology are explained.
Ken and Nicola then exchange views on which use cases can benefit from this implementation, such as Personal Finance Management, Business and Personal Accounts, Digital Wallets, Neobanks.
Ken points out some consequences for the user and the bank of not displaying transactions in a clear and intuitive way: such as increased distrust towards the bank, insecurity about possible fraud, and high costs for the bank to manage the customer service centre due to disputes.
Ken also presented the new functionality developed by Snowdrop Solutions within the transaction enrichment service: Sustainable or ESG tagging. Banks and financial institutions can now share with their customers how sustainable the merchants where they shop are, and measure their impact on the environment, Another functionality that the team at Snowdrop Solution is working on with our partners is the subscription service so that the user can view and manage subscriptions in their bank statement.
In closure, Ken reassures that MRS is reliable and secure: no personal information is accessed or shared with any third-party. There is more to come from Snowdrop and the partnership with Google and Visa, so stay tuned!
Want to know more?
Snowdrop Solutions currently works with leading digital and traditional banks in Europe, the UK and Asia Pacific. Snowdrop is a location and data intelligence company that has been a Google Trusted Partner since 2013 and Visa Europe since 2020. MRS brings together our deep understanding of the Google Maps APIs, a proprietary database and a second to none matching algorithm. We offer superior match rates and accuracy to any of our competitors and a unique customer centric approach that, other than transaction enrichment, provides cost savings and churn reduction to our clients, over and over.
If you want to know more about our product, you can access more information on our dedicated MRS page or by contacting us. A member of the team will respond to your request promptly.