Major US Banks Surpass Fintech in Service Satisfaction

BoA and JP Morgan's Strong Performance
Competing with Fast Payments and Transparent Fee Structures

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Sim Nayoung] This year, the satisfaction of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with merchant services provided by large banks in the United States has surpassed that of fintech companies. According to the report "Transformation of Large Banks Amid Competition with Fintech" released on the 9th by Hana Financial Research Institute, some large banks received higher ratings than fintech companies in this year's "U.S. Merchant Service Satisfaction Survey." The merchant service satisfaction survey is an annual report by marketing solutions firm J.D. Power that evaluates the payment process satisfaction of SME merchants.

The satisfaction score for merchant services provided by payment institutions rose to 859 points, an average increase of 23 points compared to last year, with large banks such as BoA and JP Morgan performing well. BoA ranked first with a satisfaction score of 894 out of 1000, and JP Morgan ranked second with 879 points.

Improved transparency of fee structures, enhanced customer support, and faster payments increased merchant service satisfaction. The satisfaction, which had declined in 2020 due to increased difficulties faced by SMEs during the COVID-19 pandemic and limitations of merchant services, rose significantly last year thanks to service improvement efforts centered on large banks.

Seventy-three percent of SME owners responded that they are satisfied with the changes in banking services after COVID-19. They also expressed satisfaction with the simplification of fee structures, improved cost management control, discounts on products and services after the pandemic, and regular updates of security programs. Satisfaction with the shortened settlement period?the time taken for product and service payments to be deposited into the seller’s account after a transaction?increased by 10 percentage points compared to the previous year.

Banks increased trust by complementing fintech’s strengths in IT and strengthening communication with SMEs during the pandemic. BoA and JP Morgan enhanced service satisfaction by addressing issues such as simplifying payment processes and improving payment processing speed, which were considered core competitive advantages of fintech.

The report stated, "It is a meaningful achievement that large banks have surpassed fintech companies, which had played a leading role in providing payment-related seller solutions," and added, "In the era of big blur, traditional banks need to pursue customer value differentiation by not only addressing weaknesses but also strengthening their advantages in competition with fintech."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.