As has been evident for the past decade, Asian consumers have flocked to digital technologies, with adoption rates for some devices, especially mobile phones, outstripping Western rates. ATM usage has skyrocketed in Asia, and across age segments the “consumer decision journey” has increasingly moved online. The pattern for most purchases now is that they are researched online and concluded in the branch, but we are beginning to see online purchasing as well. A significant constraint on the progress of this trend is the state of regulation in many countries, which require purchases to be finalized by customers signing documents in branches, in the presence of branch employees. Meanwhile, larger numbers of Asian consumers, especially younger ones, are expressing a preference for interacting through nonbranch channels.

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