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With the removal of the wet signature requirement for opening an account and the expansion of digital banking opportunities, more and more people started to benefit from the service of opening a bank account without going to a branch. According to current data, 1.4 million people applied to open a remote bank account in April.

*** This release is originally published in Turkish.

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ISTANBUL (TR) - The procedures and principles regarding the service, known as "digital onboarding" and called remote customer acquisition, were determined by the "Regulation on Remote Identification Methods to be Used by Banks" published in April 2021. It eliminates the obligation of users to go to a branch to open an account in a bank they are not a customer of. This service allowed financial institutions to carry out the transactions they applied when acquiring new customers on digital platforms without a wet signature. According to the data shared by the Banks Association of Turkey (TBB), the number of those who applied remotely to open an account at a bank in April was recorded as 1 million 410 thousand. Remote customer acquisition, concluded with a video call with a customer representative, was determined as 332 thousand.

Emre Ballı, Digital Marketing Manager of Hesapkurdu.com, shared his evaluations and said, “The introduction of internet banking in Turkey dates back to 1997. It has been 25 years since the application, which allows some banking services to be performed without going to the branch, entered our lives. Today, it is no longer necessary to go to a branch to open a bank account. Remote customer acquisition, one of the possibilities of digital banking, reduces the operational intensity in branches and offers customers the opportunity to work with any bank from the comfort of their home. Some banks also provide advantages such as more favorable interest or dividend rates for customers who apply remotely. As Hesapkurdu.com, which brings together the most affordable loan and insurance offers, we are shortening this process even more by acting as a bridge between our users who want to open a bank account remotely and our contracted banks.

Applications increased by 400% in one year

Pointing out that the number of monthly remote applications, which was 278 thousand in May 2021, increased to 1.4 million in April 2022, according to TBB data, Emre Ballı said, “We see a 400% increase in the number of remote applications in less than a year. This situation reveals that the banks' convenience and advantages have been adopted. Many large banks in our country offer remote customer acquisition services. Opening a remote bank account does not pose a risk through security systems and video calls provided by banks. Authentication is done with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology. Security precautions; are augmented by automatic character recognition, biometric face verification, and cross-checks. Thus, dangers such as identity and data theft can be prevented. To maximize security, it is recommended to use only bank applications and not to share sensitive information such as card passwords with anyone. As Hesapkurdu.com, we direct users who want to become remote bank customers directly to banks' official websites and mobile applications.

A new identity is sufficient for remote account opening

Reminding that the application form must be filled through the mobile application or website of the relevant bank before making a video call to open a remote bank account, Emre Ballı, Digital Marketing Manager, concluded his evaluations with the following words: It can also be done via Hesapkurdu.com. Banks offer lower interest rates, free EFT and money transfer advantages, and quick access to banking services to customers who prefer to open an account remotely. After the application, which can be completed in minutes, it takes just as long to activate the account.”