Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) recently launched NOMI Budgets, a new AI-powered solution available through its mobile app, designed to help users manage finances, develop budgets, and stay on track with spending.
“The advancements that we’ve made in AI technology enable our customers to receive financial insights, savings and personalized budgets with ease.”
NOMI Budgets uses AI to evaluate a user’s spending history, recommend a suitable budget, and send updates to help keep users on track. RBC said NOMI Budgets aims to automatically manage finances and tracks users’ spending habits, removing the need for users to classify transactions, scan receipts, or monitor each expenditure. NOMI uses predictive technology and client data to identify trends, unusual activity, and potential savings opportunities to help clients manage their finances through the bank’s app.
“We know that so many of our clients look for helpful tools and support when it comes to budgeting and managing their day-to-day finances,” said Peter Tilton, senior vice president of digital at RBC. “NOMI Budgets is the latest of our personalized digital capabilities that, using the power of AI, provides our clients with deeper insights that can increase their financial confidence.”
RBC called NOMI the first-of-its-kind in Canada but the financial institution is not the only company using AI to create these kinds of tools, other Canadian Fintech startups also have similair products. Koho’s financial services, while not powered by AI, offers budgeting tools to Canadians. Wealthsimple’s roboadvisor uses proprietary algorithms to spread users’ money into appropriate investments, and TD launched something similar this year as well.
Last November, RBC also launched its investment roboadvisor, RBC InvestEase, across Canada, saying the digital investment advice service combines automation and advice to give users a quick investment portfolio recommendation online. It also partnered with Espresso Capital last August to target Canadian tech companies seeking debt financing.
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Powered by NOMI Insights, NOMI Budgets can recommend a personalized, monthly budget in either entertainment, shopping, cash withdrawals, transportation, or dining, based on a noted increase in spending over the course of a month. RBC clients can then adjust the recommended budgets, should they wish to make changes. To help keep clients on track, NOMI Budgets will also notify them when they reach 50 percent, 75 percent and 100 percent of their budget.
NOMI Budgets is the newest addition to two other products, NOMI Insights and NOMI Find and Save, both originally piloted in 2017.
Its Insights product works by monitoring an RBC client’s bank account, providing spending advice based on past purchasing decisions, as well as monthly bills. NOMI Find and Save also monitors client bank accounts, and the AI automatically moves money into a savings account whenever the program identifies a cash flow surplus.
“Our NOMI capabilities have been developed to help our clients manage and be more mindful of their finances,” said Rami Thabet, vice president of digital product at RBC. “The advancements that we’ve made in AI technology enable our customers to receive financial insights, savings and personalized budgets with ease, and we’re quickly seeing the value that these solutions provide to so many people.”
The solution is now available on the RBC Mobile app.
Image courtesy Pixabay.
