Santander Bank has launched a voice banking technology which will enable customers to talk to their SmartBank app and ask about their card transactions, eliminating the need to manually search through statements to identify retailers and calculate spend. In a phase one roll-out of the voice assisted technology developed by natural language communications firm Nuance, iOS users of the SmartBank app can ask simple questions about their card spend such as how much did I spend on New Year’s Eve, how my transactions for the last week. In a second phase, due for release later this year, customers will be able to fully service their accounts. This includes advanced features such as the ability to make payments, report lost cards, set up account alerts and answer a broad range of questions about spend. Transactions appear in real time, retailers are highlighted by name, spend can be calculated by day, month or year and customers with a 1I2I3 credit card can also ask about the cashback they have earned. If users wish to know the total amount spent at a certain supermarket or store this year, the tool adds it up for them, saving them time having to trawl through transactions. Santander UK CEO Nathan Bostock said the bank wants banking to be simple, personal and fair.
