AYA Bank announced that it has partnered with Microsoft Myanmar to power its next generation productivity and communication services, enabling improved customer service for its 1.4 million customers nationwide.
AYA Bank will rollout Office 365 to over 1000 staff across 234 branches and offices, joining the ranks of many of the world’s best companies in choosing Microsoft’s productivity suite for its rapidly modernizing workforce. Having previously maintained its own email and file sharing servers, the move to the cloud will mean improved reliability in AYA Bank’s fast paced office environment, where thousands of transactions happen every minute.
“This is a very exciting moment for AYA Bank, to be partnering with Microsoft to embrace cloud with Office 365 as we take the next step in our digital transformation journey. As the fastest moving bank in Myanmar, we are committed to embracing global standards, and the constant improvement of customer experiences. Office 365 will help us achieve these goals inside-out. As Myanmar’s banking industry continues to grow, we can rest assured that Office 365 will scale with us as we take on more staff, or create new product lines,” said U Myint Zaw, Managing Director, AYA Bank.
Opportunities for Financial Services Industry in Myanmar
Recent developments in the country have changed the playing field for Financial Services Industry (FSI) organisations. As Sonia Kabir, Managing Director for Microsoft Myanmar, Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal and Bhutan noted, “In Myanmar, mobile usage has significantly increased in only a few short years, which is creating demand for mobility and mobile banking services. At the same time, we’ve seen large reductions in the poverty rate, opportunity to improve women’s workplace participation and high GDP growth, creating opportunities for both mobile and digital banking. This is a promising development for Myanmar, and it means that digital transformation initiatives like the one we have seen today at AYA Bank can make a big impact.”
Digitally Transforming Myanmar
Sook Hoon Cheah, President of Microsoft South East Asia New Markets agrees. “Digital transformation can make a big impact to everyday people’s lives in Myanmar. At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. We believe technology to be a strong democratising force for good: capabilities previously only accessible to the largest multinationals are now available to even small and medium organisations all around the world. Microsoft is empowering banks to deliver new value and connected experiences, helping them thrive and win greater loyalty in the digital age. We are very happy that AYA Bank is taking this leadership today as it progresses in its digital transformation journey.”
Technology is changing banking for the better
Microsoft Myanmar has been leading the charge to encourage local Financial Services Industry (FSI) organizations to embrace digital transformation.
According to latest figures released by Microsoft and IDC Asia/Pacific, FSI organizations that have embraced digital transformation saw substantial impact to their business performance last year. In 2017, FSI organizations that fully embraced digital transformation achieved 13% to 20% improvements in profit margins, productivity, customer advocacy, customer acquisition rates, and revenue from new products and services. In addition, businesses expect to add 70% more in customer acquisition rate by 2020, underscoring the beneficial outcomes that embracing digital transformation brings to the table.