Standard Chartered reshapes wealth experience with AI to solve generic advice gap

SINGAPORE — Standard Chartered is advancing its use of artificial intelligence to transform wealth management into a highly personalised experience as banks race to replace generic investment advice with dynamic, client-specific insights.

The lender’s dual leadership of cybersecurity and AI reflects a growing industry shift towards responsible AI in banking where innovation must be balanced with regulatory compliance, data security and customer trust.

The bank is designing systems that move beyond static, “vanilla” financial reports towards real-time, contextualised insights tailored to individual wealth profiles, recent transactions and life goals.

“Imagine you are a high net worth individual calling our hotline and receiving vanilla reports (a standard, out-of-the-box, or default document) that may or may not be relevant to you. Imagine a world where you get customized reports based on your contextual situation, your last inflow, and your objectives in life on a dynamic basis to maximise your wealth,” Alvaro Garrido, COO, Technology & Operations and CIO, Information Security & Data told BackgroundBriefing.news.

How is AI reshaping client experience?

Standard Chartered’s strategy centres on embedding responsible AI in banking across its operating model, integrating technology with process redesign to ensure customer outcomes improve alongside efficiency.

Rather than treating AI as a standalone tool, the bank is aligning technology deployment with customer-centric process changes aiming to simplify engagement and make financial advice more actionable.

“We are combining all the necessary technology but technology is only one factor. We are redefining our processes and streamlining the experience to be very customer-centric,” said Garrido.

This reflects a broader trend among global banks seeking to differentiate through personalised advisory services, particularly in affluent and high-net-worth segments where expectations for tailored insights are rising.

Balancing innovation with accountability

As financial institutions deploy advanced analytics at scale, responsible AI in banking has emerged as a critical priority especially in highly regulated markets across Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Standard Chartered is actively coordinating with regulators and ecosystem stakeholders while embedding governance into its AI frameworks.

“We are coordinating with government agencies and relevant actors while making sure we include every employee in this journey. We are training, accompanying, reskilling, and retraining them,” noted Garrido.

The emphasis on workforce transformation underscores a parallel challenge for the banking sector: ensuring employees adapt to automation while maintaining career progression.

Defining success beyond financial metrics

Standard Chartered is broadening how it measures success, placing equal weight on customer satisfaction, regulatory alignment and employee development.

“We will measure it through your satisfaction as a customer and how responsibly we meet the expectations of the ecosystem, societies, and governments where we operate,” said Garrido.

The approach highlights how responsible AI in banking is increasingly tied not only to risk management but also to long-term competitiveness.

Ultimately, the bank sees AI-driven personalisation as a differentiator in a crowded financial services market.

Garrido added, “At the end of the day, it is all about value. It is about how you as a customer choose Standard Chartered versus other options.”

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Transcript of the interview:

I am the CISO and the head of artificial intelligence for the bank, which is an interesting combination of roles. We are trying to bring all the value that AI delivers to our customers in a responsible way while including all different parties in this journey.

Imagine you are a high net worth individual calling our hotline and receiving vanilla reports that may or may not be relevant to you. Imagine a world where you get customized reports based on your contextual situation, your last inflow, and your objectives in life on a dynamic basis to maximize your wealth.

That would be a great customer experience. That is where we are going.

What is Standard Chartered bringing to the table in order to bring this about?

We are combining all the necessary technology, but technology is only one factor. We are redefining our processes and streamlining the experience to be very customer-centric.

We take an output view so you receive all the value in the ecosystem where we live. We also have to do this in a responsible way.

We are coordinating with government agencies and relevant actors while making sure we include every employee in this journey. We are training, accompanying, reskilling, and retraining them.

The ultimate objective is that you get the full value of it.

And how will you measure your success?

We will measure it through your satisfaction as a customer and how responsibly we meet the expectations of the ecosystem, societies, and governments where we operate. We also measure our own employees’ satisfaction and how we ensure they progress in their careers in this new world.

At the end of the day, it is all about value. It is about how you as a customer choose Standard Chartered versus other options.