Johan Thijs (CEO KBC Group) on the Use of AI in the Ecosystem
The keynote at the FEB Fellows Meeting on February 6th 2025 was delivered by Johan Thijs, CEO of the banking and insurance Group KBC. “Technology is a key driver in our ecosystem and we must stay alert because things evolve quickly. Since I became CEO of KBC 13 years ago, we’ve conducted a strategic update every three years. Why? Because our customers change and technology evolves. We follow our customers, but we strive to go further by anticipating shifts in their behaviour"
“You have to keep innovating. Sometimes, it takes time for a new innovation to find its way, but once it does, it can go very fast. We launched our first mobile banking app in 2010. Since then, we have invested no less than €6.5 billion, with an additional €2 billion planned for the coming years. Our business is data-driven and AI will boost the use of this data. In 2015 we decided to bring it all in one app and one platform. Our customers fully embraced this mobile banking solution.“
“A single app and the use of AI significantly boost productivity. Let me give you an example: decision-making about a demand for a mortgage. My team told me that the entire process – from request to final decision – takes roughly spoken 10 days. ‘Ten days?’ I said, ‘It should take 10 seconds! Or even one second!’ They didn’t believe me. But now, we can. In 7 out of 10 demands we achieve this. Why? Because we know our customers. We have the data and the tools, allowing us to anticipate their questions. For each customer we have a clear understanding of what is possible.”
“Technology is not our goal. Our aim is to continuously serve our customers better.”
KATE
“For the past three years we have had KATE – our ‘next level’ AI. KATE connects the dots and is a deep learning tool that operates 24/7, doing her job better every day. It is so convenient, and saves both us and our customers time and money. For example, if you are looking for a cheaper energy contract, KATE can provide an answer. It handles 7 out of 10 customer’s questions, and already more than half of our customers use KATE regularly. But technology is not our goal. Our aim is to continuously serve our customers better. KATE has become the brain of our company, transforming internal processes and playing a key role in product development”
“KATE also provides answers and services beyond banking activities as such. Yes, that is true. Why do we do this? Because it brings the customer to our app, and that’s what matters. Amazon sells cars, but it does more than that: it offers the whole package, including loans and insurance. We must defend our business in the same way.”
“Generative AI is the next big thing in the ecosphere. But the focus should always be: how can we serve our customers better? And one key insight is that customers don’t want ‘products’ – they want ‘solutions’. That’s why we must understand the end-to-end customer journey,” concluded Johan Thijs.
Fa Quix
