In 2015 a study made by FIS found that only 23% of customers believe their banks are fulfilling their expectations. Now, in the COVID-19 era, a recent survey conducted by PwC shows that even though consumers are happier with the banking services provided, the new risks of the industry are competitors and mostly non-traditional competitors. In fact, KPMG has stated that banks are encouraged to use channels that haven’t been prioritized in the past.

Starting with 1990, digitalization has been a constant in the financial industry. This trend that continues to grow is driven by new customer expectations. When today's consumer evaluates financial services, they don't compare banks anymore. They compare experiences. Thus, banks adopted new technologies to improve their services, and create smarter digital service offerings.

With a digital-first focus, the banking game has changed, as shown by the new disruptive proposals that appear in the industry. The latest of which, is virtual banking.

Over the past forty years digitalisation coupled with the overpowering forces of globalisation have redefined virtually all aspects of our life, from how we communicate to how we consume. Adapting to these changes, worldwide manufacturing production has been reorganised into global value chains (GVCs) to satisfy the growing demand at any time, any place. Thus, supply chains have become inseparably interconnected, whereby raw materials and intermediate goods are shipped around the globe multiple times and then assembled in yet another location to be reexported to the final consumers in both developed and developing markets. As such, about 70% of international trade today involves GVCs, making them a true backbone of our global economy.