As the saying goes, well begun is half done. And Collin Eu, managing director of the world's major banking equipment manufacturer Wincor Nixdorf China, firmly believes it.

 

This year Wincor Nixdorf China signed a series of the biggest orders it has had since entering China.

 

"It is a turning point, adding confidence to our bright future in the fastest-growing market," says Eu.

 

Earlier this year the firm won a tender to provide the Agricultural Bank of China with 877 automated teller machines (ATMs), or 25 percent of its total procurement.

 

The million-dollar deal helped the company over-achieve its first quarter sales target.

 

Shortly after, on April 4, 2006, Wincor Nixdorf received an order for 900 ATMs from the China Construction Bank.

 

This is the largest single procurement contract from the bank in the history of Wincor Nixdorf China, and is recognition that the firm is one of the bank's key preferred vendors, says Eu.

 

"A series of deals will have enormous implications for Wincor Nixdorf's growth in China," he said.

 

In the global market, Wincor Nixdorf is steadily increasing its market share. As the latest McKinsey survey shows, Wincor Nixdorf is now the second largest player in China.

 

China's banking industry has enjoyed robust development since the late 1990s. Wincor Nixdorf began contacting Chinese banks early on, hoping to supply them with ATMs and to help construction of their branches.

 

But initial interest in the company was disappointing. Bank of China purchased just several hundred Wincor Nixdorf machines over the course of a couple of years. But the breakthrough came on October 31, 2005 when the bank ordered 400 machines at one time.

 

The key factor behind the change is that adopting leading technologies is becoming a pressing task for local bankers to help them meet the needs of China's fast-growing consumer base and to compete with overseas companies.

 

Bankcard transactions in China have risen almost 100 percent over three consecutive years.

 

Statistics indicate that there are less than 50 ATMs per 1 million people in China, compared with more than 1,000 machines per 1 million people in countries like the United States.

 

"It is a huge market. And to win the market we should help banks to be more competitive," Eu says.

 

He says that local banks have gotten the message that setting up an upgraded ATM channel is a competitive weapon for banks to reach more customers in a fast and low-cost way.

 

"In China, we are rolling out cooperation with China's four biggest banks," Eu says.

 

The company will continue to strengthen its cooperation with the Big Four and proactively seek opportunities with other financial institutions to enlarge its share of the Chinese market.

 

Besides ramping up efforts to upgrade their self-service systems, Chinese banks are asking for more value-added solutions tailored to the changing demands of their customers.

 

"Utilizing the right product strategy and modern branch design concept will create recognition from the targeted branches and restore the confidence of customers," Eu says.

 

This is Wincor Nixdorf's edge over major rivals NCR and Diebold in the United States.

 

Local banks in China are proactively seeking profitability from self-service equipment.

 

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, a leading State-owned commercial bank, reported an all-time high of 515.3 billion yuan (US$64 billion) in ATM business turnover last year. The figure was 181 billion yuan (US$22.3 billion), or 50 percent, more than that in 2005, according to the bank's latest data.

 

"Chinese banks cannot be satisfied with simply supplying equipment at present. Instead, they want comprehensive services in self-service application," Eu says.

 

In addition to routine transactions such as account transfers and printed receipts, customers want more access to value-added services such as being able to pay telephone, power, gas and water bills and traffic fines via multimedia self-service terminals, Eu says.

 

For instance, Beijing recently allowed car owners to pay their toll charges through self-service terminals, which demonstrated the increasing importance of non-cash self-service terminals in banks.

 

"It is the trend in the big market. And we have a deep understanding of it," Eu adds.

 

Upgrading deposit technology is another emerging trend in China's banking industry, and it is likely to be a key competition point in the coming year, Eu says.

 

Counterfeit notes are still a rampant problem for banks and they are keen for better security technology to tackle this problem.

 

Wincor Nixdorf is currently developing a Currency Competence Centre to conduct research into anti-counterfeiting technologies in China.

 

(China Daily May 16, 2006)