Banks have become increasingly focused on growing
revenue using a variety of strategies, including new
fees and thresholds on checking accounts, re-pricing of
premium services, bolstering cross selling efforts, and a
greater focus on fee-based businesses such as wealth
management.
However, some of these efforts to spur top-line growth
were met with intense customer resistance and regulatory
scrutiny, forcing some banks to rethink their pricing
strategies. Revenue growth was further challenged by
weak loan demand and rising interest rates, which began
to negatively impact mortgage originations.
Moreover, regulations on debit interchange fees and
overdraft programs have squeezed returns, while
heightened scrutiny on other banking products has
made banks cautious about product innovation.13 These
pressures are forcing banks to design more competitive
product offerings with pricing plans that appease both
customers and regulators, but enhance revenue growth.
In spite of these constraints, banks can reinvigorate their
revenue growth strategies through a more thoughtful
product mix and refined customer segmentation approach.
Some firms have already begun to put new revenue
growth plans to work by targeting affluent customers for
expanded wealth management services. However, the
success of this strategy will rest heavily on more creative
approaches to customer insights and more robust
methods in data analytics. In this regard, much work
remains for 2014.