In downtown Hong Kong it is common to see locals with their noses pointed down at their smartphones, totally absorbed as they walk along the streets that are lined with high-end shops. In this market, where the cost of the limited retail space is being driven up by the presence of international luxury brands, it would be natural for banks to pull back on branch banking and push their tech-savvy customers onto digital channels. But, to the contrary, in Hong Kong a number of retail banks are re-energising their branch strategy.
“Rentals are ever increasing, but the physical branch is a very critical component for the consumer banking segment,” says Christine Lam, country business manager at Citibank (Hong Kong). She says that with certain customers, there is still a strong allegiance to the non-tech channels. At a group level, senior managers are driving Citi to be a leader in digital technologies, but this does not mean that the physical branch has been abandoned. “I do not see it as appropriate and enough just to rely on the digital space,” says Ms Lam.
