As brick-and-mortar establishments had to severely limit their working hours during the lockdowns of recent years necessitated by COVID-19, digital banking picked up the slack to accommodate the financial needs of people working from home. “These circumstances unveiled the true importance of taking a digital-first approach,” explains Agne Selemonaitė, chief strategy officer at ConnectPay. “As the new wave of customers sieged the system, faster development of banking services took precedence.”
And, as Selemonaitė predicted at the time of the lockdowns, this shift to online remained even after COVID-19, and development of the digital market has further accelerated.
Retail Banking Remains Significant
At the same time, as Scott Lewis, regional director of banking for the Southwest Region at JPMorgan Chase, observes, “This is an exciting time in retail banking as branches remain critical to our customers and we continue to take an integrated physical and digital approach to banking.”
Banking: The Pillar of Community
“Banks are the single most important component of Arizona’s economy. Not only do they lend to Arizonans, but they employ nearly 50,000 Arizonans, reinvesting in their communities and providing financial and social stability in their markets. Bankers educate young adults
on the importance of financial responsibility. Bankers donate significant time and money to charities. Banks are, in many ways, the lifeblood of our neighborhoods and communities,” says the Arizona Bankers Association on its website.
