Alberta’s ATB Financial is pushing the boundaries of digital banking with the upcoming test launch of its Facebook Messenger chatbot.
The bot was developed in partnership with Vancouver-based fintech startup Finn.ai and allows customers to check account balances, make transactions or ask customers service questions through a conversation with an artificially intelligent bot. In the future, ATB plans to add financial management features to the bot, so that users can check their food expenses in a given month, for example.
ATB and Finn.ai also plan to roll out the chatbot to other platforms, such as WhatsApp and SMS.
The Albertan bank states the successful testing of the bot marks the first time a full-service financial institution in North America has facilitated payments via chatbot on Facebook Messenger.
“ATB is serious about developing cutting-edge technology and we’ll continue working with leading Fintechs to enhance our customer experience,” said Wellington Holbrook, ATB’s chief transformation officer in a press statement. “Savings combined with accessible service are the cornerstones of financial health and freedom. We’re committed to offering banking solutions that will make our customers’ lives easier.”
ATB’s chatbot is launching to a test group of customers in March 2017. There is no indication yet of when it will roll out the bank’s broader customer base.
This article was originally published on MobileSyrup
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