With customer expectations constantly evolving, one bank took a bold step in 2024: it stopped, listened, and transformed. With over 8 million clients relying on Banco Santander Mexico, it committed to deeply understanding the challenges its users were facing—and then redesigned the digital experience to meet and exceed their expectations.
Listening first
Banco Santander Mexico began its journey by identifying those customer pain points that mattered most. Through a combination of data analysis, direct customer feedback and more than a hundred 1:1 user interviews, it uncovered what truly mattered: simpler money transfers, more intuitive investment tools, improved app stability and faster response times.
Clients told the bank where the friction was—whether it was confusion over transfer steps, frustrations with digital token management, or sluggish response times during peak hours, each insight became a building block in its redesign strategy.
A smarter, smoother app
The result was a total reimagining of the banking app’s most-used features. In 2024, the bank rolled out major updates to money transfers, investment services and digital banking tools for both individuals and businesses. These enhancements weren’t just cosmetic—they delivered real results.
It reduced the number of taps and steps required for critical actions, making the entire experience faster and more intuitive. The results speak for themselves: Banco Santander saw a surge of more than 10 million additional monthly money transfers compared to 2023. App complaints dropped by 48%, and negative mentions about digital usability fell from 20% to just 15%.
Key updates included a fully digital account opening process, allowing new clients to get started in minutes, directly from the app. The bank also launched a new “digital branch” feature that enables users to update their contact information securely and quickly without visiting a physical location.
For investors, it introduced tools to buy and monitor shares and investment portfolios directly within the app—making wealth management more accessible than ever. The redesigned money transfer experience, one of the most requested updates, now features faster processing, clearer navigation, and real-time confirmation.
Delivering measurable impact
These changes had a profound impact not just on user satisfaction, but on the bank’s overall performance. Its Net Promoter Score (NPS) saw a 30% increase in promoters, and traffic to physical branches for routine transactions decreased significantly. This allowed the bank’s teams to focus more on advisory and personalised services.
Internally, the bank’s newly streamlined app reduced the load on call centers and social media teams by dramatically decreasing user complaints. Most importantly, clients told the bank they felt heard—and served.
Recognising this success, The Digital Banker presented Banco Santander with two prestigious honours at the Digital CX Awards 2025 – ‘Best Retail Bank for Digital CX – Latin America’ and ‘Outstanding Digital CX – Mobile Banking – Mexico’.
Looking ahead
Banco Santander says it has always been clear about its digital customer experience strategy: to become the most used bank among clients and position itself as the #2 local bank by 2025. That vision is grounded in creating a truly seamless mobile banking experience, supported by smart, scalable technology.
Moreover, the bank is also working with its global AI team to explore how artificial intelligence can simplify customer support, guide users through complex processes and deliver personalised solutions. From intelligent FAQs to predictive assistance, Banco Santander says AI is set to become a cornerstone of its digital evolution.
