Gone are the days of queueing for hours at the bank and fumbling over papers. Emirates NDB, one of the region’s largest banks, has announced you can now open an account entirely digitally.
Simply by downloading the Emirates NDB Mobile Banking App from Apple or Google Play, you can get the ball rolling on opening a current or savings account.
Customers scan in their passport and Emirates ID documentation, fill out some personal details and fire over a selfie. Once all this is done, an account is opened instantly the bank assures. Customers will be sent a welcome pack, a debit card, a cheque book and 24/7 access to their account via a phone.
Suvo Sarkar, Senior Executive Vice President & Group Head – Retail Banking and Wealth Management, Emirates NBD, said: “As the world turns increasingly digital, consumers expect immediate and anytime access to banking services. Our new mobile account opening is a big step in this direction, where new customers can open an account instantly and at their convenience without the need to visit a branch or fill forms.”
The bank explains that new customers opening accounts through the Emirates NBD app and maintaining at least AED 5,000 in average account balances will have a chance at the ‘Save. Win. Drive.’ promotion to win one of three Mercedes Maybach S-650 cars and 180 Omega Speedmaster watches.
This isn’t the first technological innovation from the bank this year. Back in September the bank announced it was implanting Amazon’s Alexa into its services. Amazon Echo and similar devices are able to obtain information on account balances and other transactions, with permission of course.
Alexa is then able to read out banking updates to the user, negating the need to check your online account or call your branch. Emirates NDB website shows it being possible to ask such questions as “what did I spend on my card yesterday?”
The news of Emirates NDB going digital is similar to Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, wanting to push Dubai’s ‘Paperless Strategy’.
The strategy hopes to cut paper consumption in the emirate by bringing a host of key government services to your phone, rather than demanding paper documentation.
According to WAM, the strategy has so far seen 88 government services put into the ‘Dubai Now’ app.
It is hoped that by 2021 and beyond, Dubai government entities will no longer issue or request paper documents. It is said this can save up to one billion pieces of paper a year, saving 130,000 trees and 40 hours per year of citizens’ time.
