As Switzerland's largest bank is expanding its platform offering, Martha Boeckenfeld is measuring herself against the biggest in the business – and is thinking beyond banking.
Martha Boeckenfeld,UBS' head of digital platforms and marketplaces in Switzerland, is revving up Key 4, a four-month-old domestic mortgage push: the Swiss lender said property buyers can now sign new home equity loans on the platform, and will work together with property listing website homegate.ch, in a statement on Wednesday.
That’s just the beginning, Boeckenfeld signaled in a media event on Wednesday: UBS' domestic chief Axel Lehmann wants to expand loan volume via the platform to as much as 10 billion Swiss francs ($11) in three to five years. For comparison, Switzerland's annual mortgage lending is estimated at 130 billion francs.
«CX» In Focus
In particular, Key4 is meant to eventually house an ecosystem around home-ownership, including property consultants Wueest & Partner and start-up Houzy, where UBS snapped up a stake three months ago. Boeckenfeld said UBS is in talks with several competing platforms to include the bank's financing options, and is talking to property brokers as well.
She's not deterred by the veritable jungle of property ecosystems which have popped up in recent years; an ecosystem requires a certain size to survive, she notes. Nevertheless, Boeckenfeld is happy to compete alongside nimbler upstarts, «though perhaps not ten or 15 of them.» She argues for working together as a network – with the client experience at the center.
Surprising Admission
This experience, or CX as it is known in fintech and banking circles, is at the hart of Boeckenfeld's aims for Key4: «Ultimately, the client, who is used to a certain standard of user experience from Apple, Google, or Amazon, will decide. That's what Key4 needs to measure itself against.»
It is a surprising admission for bankers, an industry which until now has focused on improving distribution. Boeckenfeld signals that she is already thinking one step ahead: «We want to achieve the vision of an experience platform that in the future will include offerings from outside banking.»
Dentist Vs. Banker
Banking services have already been relegated to the background of Key4, it becomes apparent in a demonstration of the new platform. Users can calculate the monthly costs of various types of mortgages, discern whether or not they can afford to become home-owners (roughly 40 percent of Swiss residents are), and even conclude a home equity loan provided they fulfill certain income and suitability requirements.
In general, Boeckenfeld aims for a comfortable, painless journey – literally. «Like a payments app, Key4 should be a natural part of the customer journey so that clients can fully focus on their home. At best, banking can become fun – according to a Bain study, 70 percent of respondents would rather go to the dentist than to their bank.»
