Why channel reliability trumps promotions in Indonesia's bank loyalty war

Consumers don't want e-channels that are constantly down or lags.

Indonesian consumers prefer reliability and channel completeness when choosing which bank or e-wallet to use, eschewing having a plethora of features or promotions.

Today’s battle for customer loyalty lies in being chosen as the main account. Customers today are comfortable with maintaining accounts in even three or four financial service providers, said Inggit Primadevi, director of strategic analytics and insights at NielsenIQ Indonesia.

Channel reliability is the main factor for choosing and switching main accounts.

“If mobile banking is often having a down period, for example, or always lagging, that's becoming the reason for moving or switching main banks,” Primadevi told attendees of the Indonesia leg of the Asian Banking & Finance and Insurance Asia Summit 2026 held at Jakarta on 13 May 2026.

“it's no longer having more features or more promotions. Customers see the reliability first,” she added, citing data from surveys done by NielsenIQ Indonesia.

Customers' top concerns have not changed in the past years: the completeness of an e-channel and the reliability of e-channel.

Customers also place importance in banks who proactively provide financial guidance.

“Proactive here means, not only a bank is becoming like passive platform, but also a platform or bank that is actively advising, actively communicating to them about choices, about decision making that they can take in terms of fulfilling financial goals,” Primadevi said.

Customers today seek banks or service providers who can make them feel confident about meeting their financial goals. NielsenIQ Indonesia’s study showed that almost half are both sure and unsure about their ability to meet their financial goals. Only 14% said they are confident.

“They need our assistance to be trusted to move forward with this condition, and especially to attain the feeling of having better financial security,” she said.

Indonesian customers are most focused on achieving short-term goals like ensuring they have enough money to fulfill their family’s needs, and ensuring they have sufficient funds in case of emergencies, NielsenIQ Indonesia found.

Their greatest concerns are related to the economy: inflation, and the possibility of economic downturn, it added.