Business Online Banking Rank 2024: navigating challenges for MSBs

Get the analysis of online banking for MSBs

The Business Online Banking Rank 2024 serves as a critical analysis of digital experiences offered by online banking platforms. This year’s research underscores a pressing issue - interface saturation - that has emerged as a significant barrier to usability and efficiency. Conducted across over 900 criteria and evaluating 11 product categories, the report explores the evolving needs of small and micro businesses and individual entrepreneurs in a country in Eastern Europe. By benchmarking functionality, usability, and design strategies, this research reveals actionable insights to help banks overcome interface complexity and enhance user satisfaction.

In our full report, we provide an overview of online banks for small and micro businesses, roles, tasks, expectations, and client needs, as well as CJM To-Be and 100+ best practices. Contact us to learn more.

  • 10 business online banks on Android
  • 800+ criteria
  • 11 product categories

Key takeaways from the Markswebb’s research

How the competitive landscape has shifted

Over the past year, significant changes have reshaped the competitive dynamics in business online banking. Top-performing banks have further consolidated their lead by refining core functionalities and addressing critical user pain points, while emerging players have demonstrated innovative approaches to gaining market share.

Leaders in business products and digital experience quality

The research identifies leaders across various product categories and overall digital experience. These banks excel in providing seamless interfaces, efficient workflows, and tailored solutions for diverse business needs. Their commitment to innovation and user satisfaction sets a benchmark for the industry.

Best practices in digital service delivery

Banks achieving high user satisfaction scores have adopted best practices such as dynamic interface customization, AI-driven navigation, and integrated modules for payments, document management, and reporting. These practices enhance usability and ensure a cohesive digital experience.

Evolving needs of small and micro businesses

Shifts in economic priorities have influenced the expectations of small and micro businesses. Users now demand greater simplicity, faster access to critical features, and tools that align with their unique operational needs. Adaptability to these evolving requirements is essential for retaining this segment.

Gaps in product niches and specialization trends

The research highlights underdeveloped areas in product digitization, such as advanced currency control, enhanced seller services, and integrated corporate card management. Banks that specialize in these niches can carve out distinct competitive advantages by addressing unmet needs.

Market shifts from 2023 to 2024: adapting to evolving user needs

As a result of our research, we identified that ease of use within the scope of online banking is a key growth area for all product categories, requiring targeted improvements to enhance the overall user experience. Between 2023 and 2024, the business online banking market has seen a shift toward addressing interface saturation and enhancing user-centric design. Banks have increasingly adopted customization features, such as adaptive dashboards and AI-driven navigation, to streamline the user experience. While top-performing banks focused on refining core functionalities, mid-tier and emerging players invested in niche areas like currency control and document management to differentiate themselves. Additionally, the evolving economic priorities of small and micro businesses have pushed the demand for simpler, more intuitive digital solutions that cater to specific operational needs, reshaping the competitive landscape.

The diagram illustrates the annual shift in evaluations across the 11 product categories analyzed.

Business Online Banking Rank illustrates the annual shift

Practical applications of the Markswebb research

Markswebb’s insights are tailored to guide banks and financial institutions in optimizing their digital services. Key benefits include:

  • Improved navigation efficiency: Recommendations on decluttering interfaces can help banks streamline user journeys, particularly for MSBs and entrepreneurs managing complex financial operations.
  • Enhanced client retention: Simplified and adaptive interfaces reduce friction, increasing client satisfaction and loyalty.
  • Competitive differentiation: Adopting best practices identified in the research enables banks to stand out in a saturated market.
  • Strategic foresight: The report highlights future trends, equipping product teams to align their services with evolving customer expectations.
  • Optimized resource allocation: Clear identification of high-impact improvements ensures efficient deployment of development resources.
Do your small business clients struggle to find essential tools?

We identify unmet needs and recommend features that improve efficiency and retention

Get a quote

Methodology: our approach to evaluating digital banking experiences

Markswebb’s methodology combines detailed desk research, scenario-based testing, and qualitative interviews to deliver comprehensive insights:

  • Desk research: The research evaluates 11 product blocks, covering over 200 client scenarios and 800+ criteria. This ensures a robust and nuanced analysis of each platform’s functionalities.
  • In-depth interviews: Five qualitative interviews with end-users provided critical insights into specific product categories, including:
    • Debit and credit business cards
    • Trade and online acquiring
    • Business loans
    • Payroll projects
    • Role-based access models
  • Practical experience: Analysts examined the interplay between online and mobile banking tasks, focusing on key CX and UX challenges to identify improvement opportunities.

Changes in the evaluation system compared to 2023

The 2024 evaluation framework reflects a refined approach to assessing business online banking platforms. Key updates include:

  • Unified evaluation for small businesses and entrepreneurs: Recognizing minimal behavioral differences, these segments were assessed under a single framework, ensuring consistency and comparability.
  • Enhanced usability criteria: Additional metrics now capture nuanced aspects of user navigation, customization, and adaptability.
  • Expanded best practices repository: The updated framework integrates 155 new criteria and CJM To-Be analysis, offering a comprehensive view of effective user experiences.
  • Focus on underdeveloped niches: Greater emphasis on areas such as seamless document management, currency control, and advanced payment solutions ensures that overlooked functionalities receive due attention.

These adjustments aim to provide a holistic and actionable evaluation, aligning with the evolving priorities of businesses and technological advancements. Here is how the criteria are distributed across task groups in 2024.

Markswebb evaluation system: how the criteria are distributed across task groups in 2024

The evaluation of client experience in online banks for small and micro businesses is built on a weighted system. Each criterion's weight reflects its uniqueness, necessity, demand, and frequency in the digital environment. This ensures that the evaluation focuses on the most impactful features for users.

The weight of each task group equals the total weight of all criteria within it, while the final score is calculated as the number of fulfilled criteria in the group multiplied by their respective weights.

The diagram illustrates how weights are distributed across different groups in the 2024 research, providing a clear picture of priority areas within the evaluation framework.

Markswebb evaluation system: how weights are distributed across different groups

Insights: Tackling interface saturation with innovation

Our in-depth research uncovers numerous gaps and valuable insights. Here is one particularly striking example from online banking for small and micro businesses: the core challenge lies in navigating complexity. Interface overload often results from well-intentioned efforts to cater to diverse user needs. However, excessive information and poorly organized features hinder task completion, especially for time-sensitive operations. Users frequently abandon tasks or rely on external tools due to these inefficiencies.

Best practices to resolve interface saturation

Banks addressing the challenge of interface saturation are increasingly adopting dynamic customization and modular design principles to improve usability and efficiency. Key implementations include:

  • Dynamic dashboards: These dashboards automatically adapt displayed features based on individual usage patterns, ensuring that users see the most relevant tools and services. For example, frequently used functionalities like payment processing or account summaries are prominently displayed, while less critical features are minimized or hidden.
  • AI-powered navigation: Context-aware shortcuts and predictive search options significantly reduce the time users spend locating functionalities. Advanced implementations integrate natural language processing (NLP) to understand user intent, allowing quick access to complex operations, such as setting up international transfers or managing payroll.
  • Consolidated views: By aggregating related services, such as invoicing, payments, and reporting, within cohesive modules, banks eliminate the need for users to switch between multiple sections. This approach not only simplifies workflows but also enhances task completion rates by providing all necessary tools in a single view.
  • User-configurable menus: Allowing users to customize their navigation menus ensures that their specific needs are met, creating a more personalized and efficient banking experience. This is particularly beneficial for small and micro businesses with diverse operational priorities.

These best practices not only address interface complexity but also enhance user satisfaction by offering streamlined and intuitive interactions.

Banks must strike a balance between offering comprehensive features and maintaining ease of use. Future innovations, such as AI-enhanced personalization and cross-platform consistency, will play a critical role in achieving this equilibrium.

We have curated a collection of best practices from our research and are pleased to offer you a complimentary selection for your inspiration. Download the free file now to explore actionable insights.

    Get a file
    Fields requiring an asterisk (*) are essential for submission.

    Conclusion

    Markswebb’s research offers invaluable benefits for clients, providing comprehensive benchmarking, a rich repository of best practices, and detailed gap analysis. These insights empower banks and financial institutions to identify areas of improvement, refine their digital offerings, and stay ahead in a competitive market.

    We also offer audits based on the Business Online Banking Rank 2024 evaluation system and consulting services tailored to your needs. Our expertise enables us to customize analytics specifically for your fintech solutions, ensuring actionable strategies that align with your goals.

    Partner with us to transform your digital banking experience!

    Get to work

      About You Fields requiring an asterisk (*) are essential for submission. By submitting this form, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
      About project
      Attach usefull files
      Fields requiring an asterisk (*) are essential for submission. By submitting this form, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
      Become a client