PKO Bank Polski Broadens Its Service Spectrum in the Metaverse
PKO Bank Polski, a front-running bank in Poland, is enhancing and expanding its suite of services within the metaverse. This financial institution launched a virtual office on the Decentraland platform in October 2022 and has since been actively tracking the number of visits and measuring the level of engagement with this novel service model.
PKO Bank Polski has chosen to incrementally broaden its virtual "display window" in the Metaverse, introducing new components and services. At first, users could explore the bank's history and range of services, then a gallery of payment card designs that the bank has amassed over its years of operation. And now, it's time to advance to the next level.
PKO Rotunda. Source: metaverse.pkobp.pl
On May 30, 2023, PKO Bank Polski held a pioneering virtual job fair in its Decentraland Metaverse branch, dubbed PKO Rotunda. This initiative was among the first of its kind globally and a trailblazer in Poland. While open to all, the fair mainly targeted experienced tech-sector professionals expected to be fluent in navigating metaverses.
Participants in the virtual fair could learn about available roles, requisite qualifications, and apply for the most relevant positions. The most promising participants — those matching the expected profile — could even schedule one-on-one interviews with PKO Bank Polski recruiters.
Interestingly, PKO Bank Polski is open to its digital ambitions beyond Decentraland. The bank intends to establish a presence in other Metaverses, allowing it to build new VR renditions of their branches, expanding their operational scope, and widening their audience reach.
According to Katarzyna Dziwulska, PKO Bank Polski's Managing Director Strategy and Digital Transformation Division, the bank is eager to leverage virtual reality technology to broaden its operational horizons. She reflects positively on their initial foray into the metaverse, stating.
Our previous experience with being in the metaverse world has been very positive. The Virtual PKO Rotunda embedded on the Decentraland platform still acts as a digital laboratory, but we are reaching the point where it is too small for us. We have taken a decision to increase our presence in the metaverse and accelerate the process of building know-how
The bank is currently scouting for a tech firm with the right expertise and proven use cases to join forces in designing and maintaining virtual spaces. They also want to develop gaming experiences across various Metaverse platforms, such as Fortnite and Roblox.
We have decided, as a next step, to work more closely with external companies that will support us in our design work," says Dziwulska. "This model will allow us to develop simultaneously on various gaming platforms such as Fortnite or Roblox as well as metaverse platforms such as The Sandbox, where we want to create attractive and engaging virtual spaces for users.
About the Bank
PKO Bank Polski is a leading player in mobile banking in Poland, serving nearly 12 million customers through its mobile app, IKO. Recognized as one of the foremost financial institutions in Central and Eastern Europe, the bank secured the top spot in Finnoscore's assessment of digital maturity amongst 230 banks across Europe and North America.
PKO Bank Polski also stands out as the first Polish bank to venture into the metaverse, advancing its brand in the virtual spaces alongside such financial giants as J.P. Morgan, HSBC, Standard Chartered, CaixaBank, and SCB.
