The application of new Apps technologies in the Ecuadorian financial system. A factor that contributes to their development

Abstract

The continuous technological advance of the 21st century and the globalization of markets require high levels of innovation and competitiveness in the business sector. These are especially required from organizations that offer services, whose customers or users value the degree of opportunity, comfort and ease. This article is the result of a research on the use of new technologies in the Ecuadorian financial system: the use of apps as a technological tool with both internal and external clients during 2017, in order to find out their real contribution to the economic development of the financial system through the increase of market share and improvement in customer satisfaction. In order to analyze and understand the real contribution of apps to economic growth, this quantitative research consisted in the administration of surveys among a sample of financial institutions’ executives, including banks in the private sector, public sector, cooperatives and mutualists. The surveys gathered data about the use of technology (especially of apps) by external and internal clients and they were complemented with the documentary information. Results have shown that banks are the entities which have achieved the greatest participation in the financial market, and these are the organizations which use this technological tool on a larger scale. The use of apps has allowed banks to reduce costs and operating expenses as well as to achieve greater market coverage. Therefore, it can be concluded that it is a factor which contributes to banks’ profitability.