Redefining self-service banking

ATMs were first introduced over 40 years ago and since then many features have been incrementally added to the machines, in order to fulfill the dream of a truly automated teller. Modern ATMs offer a wide range of banking transactions; nevertheless the actual interaction has remained largely untouched.

In early 2007 the Spanish bank BBVA asked IDEO to re-think their self-service channel from scratch. The question was not how to further automate the teller, but rather how to humanize the machine. They started with a blank slate by really listening carefully to people talking about their banking experience; they observed subtle clues and behaviors that spoke to unmet needs when using machines. The result of that work is the vision for a totally new self-service experience: an ATM built from user up, rather than components down.

Today, that vision is reality. It took 2 years of time and a team of committed companies to develop this ATM. In 2009 the first pilot units have been installed, while BBVA prepares to roll out the ATM across its Spanish branches.