Banks Are Modernizing Physical Infrastructure
Computer vision closes the gap between the data that banks already have access to and full modernization of a bank’s physical infrastructure. “Video security cameras, access control and sensors generate enormous amounts of data that most organizations have barely tapped,” says Oscar Popravka, who leads integrations and application programming interfaces for security camera provider Verkada. “As artificial intelligence and cloud connectivity advance to make it actionable, this data is increasingly becoming a strategic asset.”
Tools that were formerly used for reactive security measures are now doing double duty as real-time intelligence generators. Banks can better understand occupancy and queue patterns within physical branches as well as how people move within them. These inform decisions about layout, renovation, staffing and other operational decision-making.
“AI-powered heatmaps can surface which areas see the heaviest traffic and which are underutilized, helping branch managers make smarter decisions about layout and staffing,” Popravka says. Computer vision would allow bank leaders to draw a digital line over an entrance, for example, to passively track foot traffic and identify peak hours for staffing, “without any manual counting or guesswork,” he adds.
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Queue trends allow banks to improve wait times, including at drive-throughs, he says. This data exists already, but in many cases, it isn’t yet fully optimized for automation to improve operations.
Immediate benefits include increased visibility, especially for managers who are running multiple locations, Popravka says, including remote analytics that show growing queues or unused kiosks costing resources that could be reallocated. “That kind of awareness used to require someone to be physically present. Now it's accessible from a dashboard,” he says.
Long-term, these data points help future decision-making based on “actual demand” rather than assumptions, Popravka adds — without much additional complexity.
For example, one credit union in the Dallas area, Popravka notes, consolidated and simplified physical security with computer vision–enabled cameras, ultimately reducing the infrastructure and manual processes needed to protect branches at scale.
“They started looking at occupancy insights as a tool for business operations, not just security. They now have full occupancy insight to understand the busiest times of day so they can optimize staffing and customer services,” he says. “The shift is from security as a cost center to security as a strategic asset. The same infrastructure protecting a branch can now inform how it operates.”
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