The growing number of rich people in Russia makes VIP-banking a strategically important area for financial-lending entities. Subject to the data of analysts, the segment of prosperous customers will rise up at least 5% per year in the years to come. A dramatic struggle is going on in VIP-banking as well as in many other segments: it would cost much for the bank if at least one VIP-client is lost due to insufficient quality service or for any other reasons.

The industry experts are assured that service of prosperous customers provides for implementation of the automated processes and the most up-to-date software. At that, the requirements to automation and software here are even stricter than in the event that it goes about the service of mass banking services consumers, as the major principles of VIP-banking include the personalization, convenience and complete confidentiality of any information relating to customers or their accounts. Accordingly, the issues of information security are more dramatic than ever.

Which are the new opportunities that the automation of VIP-clients service opens for the lending entity? “In the fi rst line, the bank may off er more complex and technological products. In the second line, the quality of service gets better. In third one, there is a decrease in the operations error level, the cost of which in VIP-clients' service is much higher than the one when serving the mass customers”, explains the director of the directorate for card, deposit and electronic business of Transcapitalbank Igor Antonov.

“Automation is the speed and transparency of service for the customer, managerial reporting”, agrees with his colleague the vice president, director of the private banking service department in the Bank of Moscow Dmitry Breitenbiecher.

According to the opinion of the vice president, head of the private banking block in NOMOS-BANK Alina Nazarova, IT-platform is one of the important constituents of service for prosperous customers. “Evidently the level of demands for automation of processes in the private banking segment is the highest one.

Automation shall resolve the matters of confidentiality and preservation of information, fi nancial planning, evaluation of the investment profi les of customers and certainly of the reporting on all the fi nancial instruments as used by the customer”, says the expert.

FLEXIBILITY AS THE LIFESTYLE

The target audience of the Russian private banking means the business elite, top-management of the largest companies, business proprietors. It is a common knowledge that a man who has his big time is very demanding against the service quality and expects a high effi ciency from the bank in management of his fi nances.

“It is more topical for VIP-segment to ensure the maximal fl exibility at a rough restriction of users' rights. Automation of VIP-clients service is distinctive in that upon a smaller scope of transactions the system must ensure a high fl exibility as for the services.

Non-standard operations and tariff -making, maximal speed for solution of specifi c issues, 24 hours per 7 days a week service: all the above means a high variation of settings in a technological way. The system's complexity raises the probability of errors, which, in its turn, sets a task to have a precise and fl exible setting of the users' rights, especially in terms of larger amounts within a transaction”, outlines Igor Antonov (Transcapitalbank).

“Our IT-solution in the private banking segment makes it possible for the customer to have a rapid and high quality preparation of all the required information on the assets which are under management. The uniqueness of the above lies in inclusion of the bank's partnering products into the report, which products have been purchased on basis of the open product architecture”, gives her comments Alina Nazarova (NOMOS-BANK).

“It is necessary to anticipate a large number of individual conditions and variation of products to satisfy the needs of VIPclients”, summarizes Dmitry Breitenbiecher (Bank of Moscow).

HOW CAN ONE ADJUST CRM?

In order to ensure a high level of confidentiality for the transactions (often it is the major demand of VIP-clients), almost each and every automation project of back office for private banking is somehow unique and is carried out for a specific lending entity. Dmitry Breitenbiecher has informed about the way CRM-system was implemented in the Bank of Moscow: "We got focused on the following criteria when selecting CRM-system for private banking: functionality and its compliance with the objectives to serve VIP-clients, aggregate cost (installation, service, training, support, administration), integrity level of the system with the Automated Banking System, option of prompt variation of functionalities and interface depending on the needs, productivity of the system. As the developer of our software is represented by our corporate unit, all our inquiries and requests were taken into account in full".

Subject to the opinion of Igor Antonov (Transcapitalbank), when solving the said matter, one should take various criteria into account. "These parameters are more than few: flexibility of setting the user's processes, option to collect all the details about the VIP­client and file them to the bank's manager, ability to perform non-standard transactions and process unusual inquires and requests, as well as a reliable system of clientele informing, including automatically", tells us the expert of Transcapitalbank.

WILL IT BE ON ONE'S OWN OR THROUGH ASSISTANCE OF A CONTRACTOR?

It will be necessary for the bank that is approaching the private banking market to bear additional costs as related to organization of the new business for such bank, as many specialists state. It must be said that pursuant to their words similar costs often incur to those lending entities that are longterm servers of VIP-clients, as all the processes of such service shall be continuously improved so that the customer will be retained against the competitors. As far as it goes about the expenses and investments, the price factor upon implementation of CRM-systems is no minor importance. Some banks prefer dealing only with their own developments while solving the said matter.

Dmitry Breitenbiecher (Bank of Moscow) informs us about the advantages of automation by forces of IT-specialists insiders: "Three key parameters - aggregate cost, ABS integration level and high professionalism of IT unit's employees - are the reasons for us to decide on development of CRM-system by our corporate forces. Besides, an option of prompt amendments into the functionality and interface of the system makes it possible for us to rely on a high level of the system's efficiency for end-users - VIP-clientele managers".

"A need to engage a vendor or integrator depends on the extent of flexibility of the given software that is installed in the bank. Provided that the work can be performed by the lending entity's own forces within appropriate terms, such a decision brings more economic benefits. Accordingly, a lack of flexibility of the software under use often disables the bank's IT service to modify the system on its own. In this case it is expedient to get an outside contractor involved", thinks Igor Antonov (Transcapitalbank).

"As a rule we conduct the developments by own resources, comments Alina Nazarova (NOMOS-BANK). In terms of our experience I guess that CRM-system shall be functional and understandable, shall be liked by the employees. Only in this case one may reach the maximal efficiency when using it".