Revolutionizing Finance with RPA Consulting: How Automation is Changing the Industry

In this post, we are going to see the key benefits and use cases of RPA in finance and accounting. We will also discuss the challenges and limitations of RPA for this sector and its future from the perspective of an RPA consulting firm.

Let’s understand the concept of RPA and its scope in the finance industry without further ado.

RPA and Its Importance in Finance

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is aimed at reducing operational costs by handling mundane and repetitive tasks on a 24×7 basis. In a way, RPA can maximize the efficiency and productivity of the banking and finance sector. This is a major reason for the increasing popularity of RPA solutions. As per the Grand View Research report, RPA in finance and banking is set to reach USD 1.12 billion by the end of 2025.

Integration of RPA in finance and accounting system can streamline many back-office processes that once become a headache for employees. Apart from handling tedious, manual, repetitive tasks, RPA can reduce the need for human involvement significantly, thereby reducing the chances of errors. RPA has a positive impact on the financial institution’s performance and efficiency levels.

Benefits of RPA in the Finance Industry

There is no exaggeration in mentioning that the finance industry is one of the biggest beneficiaries of RPA technology. A Gartner report has revealed that as many as 80% of leaders in the financial sector use some form of RPA for different reasons. We will see some of the use cases of RPA in finance and accounting in a later part of this post.

Let’s go through some of the key benefits of robotic process automation for the BFSI industry.

Reduced Expenses

As per the Deloitte estimate, RPA deployment can reduce costs by up to 30%. It is possible because of more efficiency without investing in additional infrastructure.

Higher Scalability

Implementation of RPA in finance can bring more scalability and the financial institution can easily expand its operations globally.

Minimal Interference

Employees can easily use the RPA solution after some training and therefore, there is minimal interference from the IT department.

Increased Efficiency

Software robots can work on repetitive tasks on a 24×7 basis, and your employees can focus on productive activities with more efficiency.

Flawless Process

A financial RPA brings automation to the process. As a result, there is little human intervention and the least chance of errors in it.

Use Cases of RPA in the Finance Industry

RPA is all set to use innovatively in the thriving BFSI sector. Though a reputed RPA consulting firm can shed more light on it, here we mention the top six use cases.

Generating Reports

The finance industry depends on real-time and periodic reports on various transactions and auditing. Be it monthly closing or a profit & loss statement, RPA can generate the reports as and when necessary to address the reporting-related challenges effectively.

Know Your Customer

KYC (Know Your Customer) has become a regular process for financial institutions and banks. It is a time-consuming and to an extent, tedious task. RPA can handle it well by sending regular notifications to your customers and validating their data quickly.

Fraud Detection

Frauds and suspicious transactions can give major shocks to the finance sector. RPA can use the ‘if-then’ method to identify any instance of fraud in advance so that the institution can take preventive measures.

Loan Processing

Processing on loan and credit card applications includes verification of the customer’s information, data validation, etc. RPA in financing can handle such repetitive tasks accurately and save a lot of time and effort for employees.

Accounts Payable

It is a time-consuming process for employees as they need to digitize invoices and validate all the necessary fields before processing the payment. RPA, on the other hand, can easily handle this task with the help of OCR (Optical Character Recognition).

Mortgage Processing

It is one of the most important use cases of RPA in finance and banking. Closing a mortgage loan can take up to 60 days for banks. Thanks to RPA, loan officers can save their time and effort while completing the mortgage process efficiently.

Challenges and Limitations of RPA in the Finance Industry

Optimization of recurring processes and higher productivity are some of the key benefits of RPA in finance, but we can mention a few roadblocks to RPA implementation.

Some financial operations are crucial and it can be dangerous to remove human intervention suddenly and completely from such processes. Robotic bots follow predefined rules and it is necessary for users to review these set configurations for handling exceptions without any errors. In other words, continuous monitoring of RPA bots plays a vital role in ensuring the success of RPA implementation.

Another challenge is giving proper training to users. Though RPA software can work more efficiently than other accounting software, users should have a complete idea of basic RPA functions and how bots work for the given process. Also, financial processes require transparency and accuracy to maintain, and therefore, users of customized RPA solutions for the finance sector should remain alert during working hours.

A reliable and renowned RPA consulting firm can help you overcome these challenges and leverage the benefits of this evolving technology.

Future of RPA in the Finance Industry

Intelligent automation is the future of RPA in finance and other industry sectors. As innovative use cases of RPA will arrive, it is necessary to consider that no company can acquire and implement all automation-related capabilities in one stroke. RPA technology and tools will evolve over time and bring new solutions as per the needs of the financial sector and market trends.

Accounting knowledge, efficient monitoring of automated processes, and basic information on configuration are necessary to make the most of RPA in the BFSI sector. These three factors will assist your finance teams to augment all the abilities of intelligent automation over the period. Finally, your teams should follow the rule of the track, analyse, and action for RPA solutions.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, RPA can empower various teams across different departments in your financial institution. You can gain an edge over competitors and improve productivity by adopting RPA in various financial processes. This emerging and future-ready technology can save time, effort, and money while streamlining repetitive processes and increasing efficiency.

However, we need to remember that people who are directing software robots remain crucial for ensuring the success of RPA in finance. While remaining closest to the configurations of software robots, users can prevent any mistakes occurred due to the exceptions in the rule. It is always advisable to take the assistance of an RPA consulting firm to get the optimum results.