By Our Special Correspondents

Qorus, the organization formerly known as Efma, and Accenture (ACN) has launched the ninth edition of the Qorus-Accenture Banking Innovation Awards. The global competition rewards the best new innovative ideas and practices currently transforming the banking industry.

“The Banking Innovation Awards serve to shine a light on the huge effort being made across the banking industry by organizations looking to modernize their operations and deliver exceptional and memorable customer experiences”

Banks and fintechs worldwide are invited to submit innovative projects showcasing their most transformational digital strategies within the following seven categories:

Analytics & Artificial Intelligence (AI) — using data, analytics and AI at scale to improve a bank’s offerings, experiences and operations.

Digital Marketing & Sales — transforming how banks understand and communicate with customers, position offerings, and generate leads.

Future Workforce — focusing on changes to work, the workforce and the employee experience.

Neobanks & Specialized Players — innovations from the top consumer-facing banking, lending and payment startups.

Offering Innovation — breakthrough concepts that dramatically enhance or transform the products or functions that generate revenue for banks.

Reimagining the Customer Experience — focusing on banks’ distribution channels and the management of customer communications, engagement and relationships.

Social, Sustainable & Responsible Banking — highlighting advances in a bank’s social purpose, along with its commitment to being a good corporate citizen and a true ally of its customers.

The best innovation in each category will be selected through a rigorous, independent judging process. This includes votes by a 30-member panel of judges comprising senior banking leaders from around the world, as well as online votes by Qorus members and non-members from financial institutions. Last year’s awards attracted 816 entries from almost 300 financial services institutions in 73 countries.

Banks can submit entries until Sept. 30 at www.bankinginnovation.qorusglobal.com/innovations. Selected innovations will be entered for the annual awards process and celebrated at a global awards ceremony on Nov. 30.

Each entry will be assessed using three criteria: its originality; its impact — i.e., the innovation´s ability to generate long-term competitive edge and return on investment; and universality — the innovation’s adaptability for use in other markets and countries.

In addition, one winning ‘Global Innovator’ award will be presented to the bank that displays a corporate vision for continuous innovation and transformation, including the development and leadership of a broad ecosystem of partners extending beyond banking, and the use of emerging technologies for improved customer experience and business performance.

“The Banking Innovation Awards serve to shine a light on the huge effort being made across the banking industry by organizations looking to modernize their operations and deliver exceptional and memorable customer experiences,” said CEO of Qorus, John Berry. “Every year, the awards get bigger and better. We’ve received more than 4,000 innovations from over 2,000 institutions over the past nine years, and last year we received more than 20,000 votes. We are proud to be a part of such a highly regarded event.”

Fabrice Asvazadourian, who leads Accenture’s banking industry practice in Europe, said, “As the banking industry becomes more fragmented, challenger banks and bigtechs continue to chip away at the value chain. While this creates opportunities for collaboration, it also presents banks with a stark choice: commit to continuous technological innovation, or risk yielding their competitive advantage. We are excited to see how banks are challenging their long-established conventions in this year’s Qorus-Accenture Banking Innovation Awards.”