Financial decisions – whether it’s buying a home, planning for retirement, or just managing day-to-day expenses – are some of the most important choices we make. But they’re often overwhelming, with complex details that can be hard to navigate. We’ve all been there: trying to make sense of the options and wishing someone could just explain it all in plain English.

That’s where expert advisers come in – they’re our guides through the maze of financial products and jargon. But unfortunately, advisers can’t be there 24/7 to answer every question. Ultimately, the final decision rests with you, and to make it confidently, you need access to credible, comprehensive information that’s easy to understand and tailored to your situation – available whenever you need it, throughout your entire journey.

The challenges in the current financial services landscape

When making a financial decision, many people start by asking friends or family for advice, using online searches – Google, Reddit, YouTube – hoping to gather enough information to feel confident and find the right service providers before committing too much. But here’s the problem: it’s a lot to take in, and it can quickly become overwhelming.

• Complex Information Overload: You’re bombarded with heaps of information, trying to make sense of it all. It’s like drinking from a firehose – critical details are coming at you from every direction, and you wish someone could explain things as many times as needed to feel confident.

• Credibility of Sources: Then there’s the issue of credibility. With so many voices out there, how do you know which advice to trust? It’s hard to figure out what’s relevant to your specific situation, and you can’t exactly ask a Reddit thread to clarify things for you.

• Access to Advisers: When you finally decide to talk to an adviser, they’re great – but they’re not always available. You might be left waiting on hold or feeling hesitant to ask too many questions because you don’t want to seem overly needy or unqualified. And sometimes, it’s just easier to Google something than to spend 20 minutes on the phone waiting for a simple answer.

These challenges create friction in the financial journey, making an already complex process feel even more stressful and time-consuming.

Financial services in the traditional digital age

So, what’s causing all this friction? It largely comes down to the structured, rigid workflows that financial services rely on. To manage the industry complexities, we’ve built systems designed to gather all the necessary information, filter customer cases through various criteria, and fit them into specific categories to find them the best products. While these processes are efficient for data processing and compliance, they’re not exactly user-friendly.

We’ve essentially taken these well-defined processes and pushed them onto our customers. Customers are faced with complex forms, lengthy terms and conditions, and a strict journey they must follow – whether it suits them or not. While advisers might be accustomed to these processes, they can be overwhelming for the average consumer who just wants straightforward, personalised advice.

(Unanswered questions in a rigid financial process force customers to seek answers elsewhere)

Traditionally, digital systems were often developed using meticulously crafted flowcharts.  These charts map out the customer journey, highlight critical checkpoints, and ensure service quality. However, this approach often requires users to adopt a form of computational thinking – structuring their queries and actions to fit into the predefined system. From a customer’s perspective, it can feel like being funnelled through a rigid process that doesn’t account for individual needs or preferences.

The GenAI revolution: a new era for financial services

This is where Generative AI (GenAI) comes into play, and it’s a game changer. The advancements in Large Language Models (LLMs) are transforming interactions. Since they are trained to understand and respond in natural language, interactions with GenAI digital agents feel just as intuitive as talking to a human adviser. No longer do users need to adapt to the system; instead, the system adapts to them.

Think of GenAI as a translator between humans and computers, acting as a powerful agent that bridges the gap between you and the complex digital systems that underpin financial services.

Traditionally, digital systems were built around data processing, requiring users to learn coding languages or adopt a computational mindset – essentially, to think like a computer.

GenAI changes all that.

Now, you can communicate with GenAI agents in your own language, and it will translate your commands into actions that the system can execute. Whether you need to find the answer to your financial doubts, manage your case documents, or even build a custom financial model, GenAI understands your needs and handles the technical complexities, allowing you to focus on your decisions.

(GenAI Digital Agents orchestrate across platforms and functions in a single interface)

GenAI’s ability to use natural language to manage complex human interactions means you no longer need to structure queries to fit rigid systems. Instead, you can engage in fluid, conversational dialogue, making the user journey more accessible and empowering. For the financial services industry, this means breaking free from the rigid processes of the past. We can now offer personalised, intuitive, and scalable experiences, leading to better outcomes for everyone involved.

Does that mean we can just directly deploy ChatGPT for everything?

Not quite.

The gap between GenAI technology and real-world applications lies in discovering appropriate use cases, tailoring the application design, training the application for contextual understanding, and equipping it with the right knowledge and tools. Just as Excel is a powerful tool that still requires custom databases, templates, and automation, foundational LLMs lack the contextual knowledge needed for specific scenarios.

It is critical to understand that LLMs are trained to understand human language and they don’t inherently know everything. They can sometimes give the impression of knowing more than they do, which can lead to significant risks from model hallucinations and misunderstandings. This is why techniques such as Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and setting up model guardrails are essential.

GenAI tools shouldn’t be your source of knowledge; rather, they should assist you in accessing verified sources of truth and completing your tasks easily.

To truly streamline processes, digital agents must be tailored, integrated, and orchestrated across various systems – a challenging but exciting mission.

That’s why at Koodoo, we’ve begun building GenAI tools specifically for the financial services industry.

Looking ahead, we envision a future where GenAI-powered digital agents can handle 90% of the routine interactions that currently bog down both customers and advisers.

Imagine a world where, instead of filling out endless forms, you can simply explain your situation to an intelligent system in your own words. The system understands, processes the information, fills out your forms, answers your questions, and guides you to the best next steps – all while keeping your adviser in the loop for the more complex decisions.

This shift doesn’t just make things easier for customers; it also allows advisers to focus on what really matters – building relationships, providing empathetic support, and guiding clients through the most critical decisions. By freeing them from mundane tasks, advisers can focus on the high-value, rewarding, and complex work that truly makes a difference.

Building the future today

We’re at a pivotal moment in the evolution of financial services and software design. The technology is here, and the potential is enormous. At Koodoo, we’re committed to harnessing GenAI to create a future where financial services are not only more efficient but also more human. By automating the routine and focusing on what really matters, we’re paving the way for a future where every customer feels understood, valued, and supported.

In the end, it’s all about meeting customers where they are, offering them the personalised, efficient service they deserve, and doing so in a way that scales. The future of financial services isn’t just about technology – it’s about people. And we’re excited to be leading the way.

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