[patio11]

I think the plan is decoupling "retail banking UX" from the multibillion dollar investment you'd need to implement a retail bank nationally in the US, and then testing whether innovation on UX alone provides value over the generic bank experience.

Personally, my experience suggests that many people care very little about receiving monetarily the best deal (and the exceptions make sucky customers).

[stoney]

My bank in Australia, Commonwealth Bank, recently refurbished my local branch as a "flagship" branch, lots of TV advertising about how awesome the new experience is, etc. I thought nothing of it until the other day when I had to go to the bank. When I went in, someone greeted me about 5 seconds after I walked through the door, asked what I wanted, took me to the right counter and explained what I wanted to the person behind the counter (there was no queue - but that might have been good luck). I was completely blown away by the service. At the moment I don't think any deal from any bank would tempt me to switch.

So yes, I think UX innovation could add a lot of value to the generic bank experience.