This was an outcome-focused fast paced project focused on creating an Open Banking portal for NCBA bank based out of Africa.
The Context
2023
User Experience Design | Design Lead
NCBA Open Banking Portal
Led the end to end design process for the project including the visual design direction. Due to the short timeline the project was straightforward and outcome focused.
My Responsibilities
"NCBA is one of East Africa's largest banking institutions, with an asset base of USD 331 million and shareholders' equity worth USD 48 million.
The institution was formed in 2018 through a merger between NIC and CBA banks in Africa.
About NCBA Group
We identified the key elements that can help us bring the same design language in the new design.
With the help of the NCBA team we were able to identify their brand color, typeface and visual branding elements.
Primary Identifiers
Averta : ABC abc 123
R57 G48 B45
Pantone 412 C
R58 G179 B229
Pantone 298 C
Pantone 185 C
R228 G3 B44
Pantone 102 C
R248 G226 B0
R159 G25 B126
Pantone 2415 C
Pantone 3262 C
R0 G168 B169
Averta Bold : ABC abc 123
Visual Element
Challenges
The biggest challenge we faced was finding a balance between a futuristic tech design and NCBA brand that had its own design laguage.
We went through multiple iterations figuring out the right colors, illustration and image styles.
Collaborating with multiple stakeholders with different cultures was tricky but rewarding. We spent a lot of time understanding their requirements and how we can ensure reaching that outcome.
Final Outcome
Showing all the APIs to the users was an important need for the user to be able to make an informed choice.
We translated the same designs for mobile as well. Although users could not use the APIs using their mobiles, it was enough to be able to register on the platform.
The user journey was simple and intuitive, so we put more effort in testing the protoypes and making the flow more intuitive while keeping the brand idenitity intact.
Carrying the brand Identity
As an established brand in Africa, we needed to incorporate NCBA's visual style in the designs. So we focused on finding the right elements of the brand and doing some initial research
Cultural background must be taken into consideration when designing for a specific demographic
Insights
Working with all the stakeholders helped us understand the context and purpose of the tool in depth.
This project is being implemented as we speak, hopefully we will be able to bring a positive impact with our design and implementation capabilities