The US banking group is embracing these digital "assistants" and says they aren't intended to replace humans.

It seems that if you haven't got a chatbot, you are being left behind in today's banking world.

With organisations such as OCBC, Bank of Singapore and Credit Suisse getting into the chat act, another firm - BNY Mellon - has brought in a chatbot known as Selina. (A chatbot is a computer programme designed to simulate conversation with human users, especially over the internet.)

US-headquartered BNY Mellon wants to streamline operations, with such technology part of the trend, Sammi Cho, chief executive of the Hong Kong branch, is quoted by the South China Morning Post as saying. The publication notes that lenders such as HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank and Hang Seng Bank, among others, have launched AI-driven chatbots to help clients.

BNY Mellon’s chatbot can check information on clients’ trading in Hong Kong and US markets, the report said.

Cho said said the chatbot was not aimed at reducing headcount but at improving overall client experience. “Our people are our most important asset. While the chatbot will help clients in checking transaction information, this will allow our staff to focus on providing more sophisticated services to our clients such as helping them enter new markets.”

The chatbot revolution is one of the themes of the digitalisation of wealth management in Asia. This publication reported in March that Citigroup rolled out a service on the Facebook Messenger channel for all its consumer banking customers.

A report last June by MyPrivateBanking Research, the Switzerland-based firm, identified the most popular “chat” facilities used by wealth management firms. The study, titled Digital Wealth Management in Asia: Focus on China and India, analysed the strengths and weaknesses of the digital wealth management of the ten largest wealth managers in China and India. It focuses on firms' offerings to their high net worth clients and how these compare with the market’s needs and expectations.

In China, it was found that 80 per cent of wealth managers use WeChat, which is seen as the most important digital channel. Chatbots are used by four out of ten wealth managers, all of which are local players, and chatbots are intergrated into their WeChat accounts, website and/or mobile application. Also, the report found that universal banks focus on their retail client sector more than private clients when it comes to technological innovation.

Last June, OCBC, the parent of Bank of Singapore, also introduced a chatbot to answer employees’ HR queries.