BCR’s George digital ecosystem expands with two new features, Round Up and Spotlights, to help users save and be in control of their financial lives

Banca Comercială Română has launched two new functionalities in the George smart banking platform – Round Up and Spotlights, aimed at providing users with the prerequisites for a more balanced financial life. The Round Up functionality turns card transactions into regular and automatic savings opportunities, by rounding each amount spent up to the next multiple of 5 lei, the difference being transferred to the user’s savings account.

As a concrete example, for a purchase of 21 lei, the amount spent from the current account is rounded up to 25 lei, and the difference of 4 lei is automatically transferred to the customer’s savings account. Those who want to save faster can use the “Accelerator” option, which even allows adding an additional amount of 1, 5 or 10 lei to each round. Concretely, using the example above and activating the “Accelerator” option with 5 lei, any George user will be able to set aside a total of 9 lei in his savings account. The second feature, Spotlights, provides a detailed insight into your expenses and is dedicated to more efficient money management, with over 18 categories and 98 sub-categories of expenses available. Thus, monthly expenses are classified in the form of widgets and there is the possibility of setting a personalized budget, global or even at the level of each category or subcategory of expenses, so that George users can manage it as efficiently as possible.

Cristian Mustață, Deputy Executive Director, BCR Retail Distribution: “Continuous innovation is the DNA of the George ecosystem, because we want to constantly surprise and support our customers with the functionality available to them in George. Now, through Round Up, customers will be able to save every time they spend. This new option in George was designed to bring financial health right through the financial consumption habits of every customer regardless of their age, part of our long-term strategy and mission, which is centered on financial education. In addition, there is Spotlights, the second feature added to the list of options in George, which helps customers to track and manage their money and expenses more responsibly, offering the prospects of truly smart financial choices.”

Activating Round Up is quick and easy from the George app. Customers who do not yet have a savings account can open one in George very simply and quickly, directly from the Round Up activation screen, without going to the app store or visiting a bank branch .

The Spotlights tool is automatically enabled and can be accessed from the George app’s “Home” screen. For the best possible money management, customers have the possibility to choose which accounts are included or excluded from the monthly expenses. Customers can also create rules for transactions and categorize them into a specific subcategory. The George digital ecosystem has experienced constant development over the past 6 years. Around 300 features and options have been introduced since its launch in October 2018.

Currently, George has 2.34 million users (internet banking and mobile banking), of which over 1.9 million are active users of the George mobile app, up 13% year-over-year. 84% of all BCR products for individuals (current account opening, mortgage and consumer loans, savings account, deposits, insurance and investment products) are currently granted on a 100% digital flow. The month of April 2024 even marked a record for digital sales, with 90% of all products sold at bank level purchased on a 100% digital flow.