Redesigning Core Banking for Efficiency & Usability

Overview

Interswitch’s Core Banking platform is a digital banking solution that enables banks, microfinance banks (MFBs), and financial institutions to efficiently manage customer accounts and transactions. The platform provides the infrastructure for digital banking in Nigeria and across Africa, supporting critical operations such as fund transfers, loan management, and recurring transactions. As a Product Designer on the Core Banking team, I was responsible for enhancing the platform’s usability, efficiency, and automation.

1️⃣ Understanding User Pain Points

In collaboration with the ux research and engineering team, I conducted heuristic evaluations and usability testing on the existing platform to identify friction points. 📌 Heuristic Evaluation Results: * Severity rating: 4.0 (high usability concerns) * Major issues: Navigation complexity, inefficient workflows, lack of real-time feedback 📌 User Interviews & Usability Testing: Administrators from financial institutions were interviewed to understand how they interact with the platform. The key insights revealed: * Recurring transactions were difficult to manage manually due to the lack of a robust standing instructions feature. * Report generation was inefficient, requiring multiple steps that frustrated users. * Global search was non-existent, making it hard to locate customer records quickly.

2️⃣ Enhancing the Core Banking Experience

To address these issues, I: ✅ Redesigned the Core Banking Platform (Dec 2023 - Ongoing UAT) – Revamped key modules including Customer Service, Operations, and Reporting, improving usability and consistency across the platform. ✅ Introduced a Global Search Feature – Implemented a universal search function that allowed admins to find data instantly, reducing search time and improving efficiency. ✅ Implemented a More Intuitive Feedback System – Designed a system where users receive real-time status updates and error notifications, enhancing the user experience and reducing confusion. ✅ Conducted Usability Testing – As each flow was approved by the business, I tested usability to ensure seamless interactions.

3️⃣ Usability Testing & Results

Once the redesign was completed, I collaborated with the research team to conduct usability testing on each module to validate the improvements. 📌 Report Module Usability Test Results: * 100% Task Completion Rate (all test users completed tasks successfully) * 0% Error Rate (no mistakes made during tasks) * 0% Help Requests (users found it intuitive without external assistance) 📌 Overall Usability Improvements: * Usability severity rating reduced from 4.0 to less than 0 (highly improved UX). * Admin satisfaction increased significantly, with positive feedback on efficiency.

Redesigning Core Banking for Efficiency & Usability

Overview

The problem

My Role & Design Process

Outcome & current status

Key takeaways

Final Thoughts