Customer communication has never been more critical for banks, financial service providers, fintechs and insurance companies. Today’s customer expects instant alerts, updates, and support, whether they’re checking their balance, applying for a loan, or needing a unique PIN code to log in to their account. At the same time, financial institutions face increasing pressure to prioritise data security and build customer trust, while ensuring that communications are actually seen and acted upon.
Historically, financial institutions have relied on SMS to deliver important messages (along with in-app and push notifications). However, in recent years, many have adopted Rich Communication Services (RCS) as a modern alternative that not only enables them to reach customers quickly and conveniently in their native messaging app but also builds trust and drives engagement.
Read on to examine how RCS for Business can be used across the finance sector, its benefits and security considerations, and find answers to the most common questions about this messaging channel.
RCS business use cases for the finance sector
RCS business messaging gives financial organisations an interactive and engaging way to communicate with customers. RCS supports branded messages, high-resolution media sharing, suggested replies, and conversational messaging, allowing such organisations to deliver a quality, seamless customer experience. It also builds on the convenience of SMS, as all RCS conversations appear in the default messaging app on both Android and iOS. RCS messages are delivered as data parcels over the internet, unlike SMS, which relies on traditional mobile messaging technology. Learn more about how RCS works.
Some of the most valuable use cases of RCS within the finance sector include:
1. Customer service and support
RCS enables real-time, two-way messaging directly in the customer’s text messaging app, which can be much easier than calling a contact centre or visiting the website to chat online. Via RCS, customers can ask account-related questions, report a problem, and access information through ‘rich cards’ (which combine media, text, suggested replies and actions in the same message). Chatbots can be integrated into customer service workflows to handle routine enquiries 24/7, with more complex queries escalated to a human agent when needed.
2. Banking notifications and security alerts
Another use case is sending important one-way notifications, such as balance updates, overdraft alerts, and real-time transaction confirmations. Then there are two-factor account authentication messages with one-time passcodes (OTPs) and fraud alerts. As RCS messages are fully branded with the institution’s logo, colours, and contact details, it’s easy for customers to see that messages are trustworthy — they can then be confident in logging into their account or take immediate action to investigate any suspicious activity.
3. Marketing communications
Financial institutions are required to follow strict rules and regulations when sending marketing campaigns to ensure transparency and customer protection. While these vary by country and jurisdiction, a common principle is that promotional messages must be clear, fair and not misleading, with explicit customer consent obtained before sending campaigns. Provided the necessary obligations are met, financial organisations can be very creative and flexible in their RCS campaigns. There are so many ways to leverage RCS, especially through rich cards and carousels (a series of rich cards) to get the message across in a way that hooks customers and encourages them to take action. Here are just a few specific examples of what can be achieved with RCS:
Promoting a new high-interest savings account with a hero image, interest rate information and a ‘Learn more’ action button.
Using a product carousel to showcase a range of mortgage products and allowing customers to contact an advisor directly within the message.
Seasonal campaigns, i.e. travel insurance before holiday periods or home insurance during winter months, with suggested actions to obtain a quote or read the small print.
Educational campaigns with long-form text or video content with money-saving tips, investment news, insurance misconceptions, etc.
Related: Read how Sun Finance Group are using business messaging with Messente.
4. Regulatory notices
An RCS message can make important information clearer, more accessible and easier to act upon than SMS (which has technical and design limitations), making it an effective channel for communicating changes to terms and conditions, interest rates, privacy policies and customer rights. Being able to present such complex details in a flexible or visual format can make it easier for customers to understand what’s changed, when it takes effect, and whether they need to take action. Supporting documents can be attached as files to the message.
RCS business messaging security and reliability
Data security, account protection, and customer trust are important considerations for banks and other providers in the finance space, given that they handle large volumes of customers’ personal information and payment details, which are targets for fraudsters, cybercriminals, and phishing attacks.
Digital channels are now vital for customer communication and engagement, so financial institutions must ensure that messages are delivered securely and all customer data is protected to the highest standards. Customers must also be able to identify legitimate communications confidently.
RCS provides a trusted messaging experience thanks to the branding options available. However, it’s important to understand how such messages are secured, handled, and stored, as well as the protections available to address phishing scams, fraud, and spam.
RCS business messaging encryption
End-to-end encryption (E2EE) provides the highest level of security for data as it travels across networks and devices. It means that third parties are unable to read the contents of a message, keeping it safe from internet providers, messaging apps and hackers. While person-to-person RCS messages can support E2EE, RCS business messaging relies on Transport Layer Security (TLS) to protect data in transit across the internet. TLS is a widely trusted and strong encryption standard used across the internet, and it’s commonly used by banks and financial institutions to secure online banking sessions and APIs, and prevent Man-in-the-Middle attacks.
Access to RCS messaging data
Various parties will have access to RCS data for routing, storing, and delivering messages. This includes the authorised messaging platform, the mobile network operators involved, and any other third parties, such as messaging aggregators. All will have their own data processing agreements and policies — and financial institutions using RCS business messaging should carefully review these to understand where data is stored, how it’s handled, how long it's retained for, and who has access to it.
Can RCS messaging prevent fraud?
Fraud, phishing and spam continue to be incredibly challenging for financial organisations. SMS has often been the channel of choice for short banking notifications, 2FA PIN codes, and other account alerts, but unfortunately, it offers limited options for verifying a sender’s identity. As a result, customers may not be able to tell whether a text message is genuine or fraudulent.
No single digital channel can prevent messaging fraud; however RCS includes features that help financial institutions become more recognisable and deliver trustworthy communications.
Any business that wants to send RCS business messages must undergo a strict verification process to prove its legitimacy. This is a complex process in which the business submits its brand identity, intended RCS use cases, and message templates to Google and/or individual mobile networks for approval. It can take anything from a few days to several weeks to get verified: the result is a verified sender profile and official launch of an RCS Agent (the digital profile used to send messages).
A verified RCS sender profile is a bit like having a professional business card that appears inside the recipient’s text message inbox. It features a verified badge (with a checkmark), the official company name, logo, brand colours, business description and contact details. In contrast, SMS displays either a phone number or a simple sender ID. The consistent visual branding available with RCS helps customers recognise genuine communications and spot fraudulent ones.
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It's very difficult for a casual fraudster to set up a verified sender profile through RCS due to the strict identity checks and vetting. But a seasoned cybercriminal can exploit carrier loopholes or use a compromised account. Financial organisations should be aware that using RCS business messaging still requires secure authentication processes, transaction monitoring, broader cybersecurity protocols, and customer education on the types of scam messages they may receive.
RCS regulatory and data protection compliance
Banks and financial service providers operate in a highly regulated environment. They must comply with legal and regulatory requirements related to data protection, privacy, operational resilience, financial crime prevention, and consumer protection. While RCS business messaging can support these objectives, compliance depends on how the technology is implemented and governed, not on the messaging channel itself. The onus, therefore, is on financial institutions to check that their use of RCS aligns with the relevant regulations and frameworks, including GDPR, DORA and information security standards such as ISO 27001.
Can RCS integrate with banking and CRM systems?
Most financial institutions won’t build RCS capabilities into their existing infrastructure. Instead, they connect an RCS messaging platform into their tech stack — core banking databases, payment gateways and CRM systems — via an API. This allows key events generated by these systems (such as a suspicious transaction, an account login attempt, or an engagement interaction) to trigger the sending of RCS messages to customers automatically. For example, an account login attempt would trigger the instant delivery of a unique PIN code to the customer trying to access their account. RCS business messaging can also integrate with support solutions and chatbots, enabling customers to get help quickly or use self-service.
FAQs on RCS in the finance industry
The following FAQs address some of the most common considerations for banks, fintechs and financial service providers when implementing RCS business messaging.
1. What happens when a customer’s phone doesn’t support RCS?
If a customer's phone doesn’t support RCS, the message will revert to SMS and be sent as plain text. Any media included would most likely disappear, and if the text exceeds 160 characters, it would appear across multiple separate messages. This can lead to disjointed messaging and compromise the overall customer experience. Financial institutions looking to use RCS should ask their messaging provider whether it’s possible to set up a dedicated SMS fallback option that clearly explains the key points in a single text message if RCS fails. An important point to remember from a security perspective is that messages sent via SMS have Transport Layer Security (TLS).
2. Does RCS have limitations on iOS devices?
RCS was originally designed for Android devices. While Apple now natively supports RCS messaging, its functionality and availability can vary between mobile carriers and countries. Customers must also be using an iPhone running iOS 18 or later to receive RCS messages. As a result, support for RCS messaging on iOS isn’t yet as universal as SMS, and the overall messaging experience and security aspects can be inconsistent.
3. How does RCS business pricing compare to SMS?
SMS is typically billed on a per-message model. RCS can be billed per message, as with SMS, but there are other billing models to consider as well. For a single, rich message that includes the branded sender profile, images, videos, and action buttons, a flat fee will be charged based on message volume and required data. A two-way conversation is billed at a flat fee per 24-hour conversation window (similar to WhatsApp for Business). This session can include unlimited two-way dialogue, carousels and complex chatbot flows.
Maximising value with RCS and SMS
RCS for Business helps financial organisations engage customers through branded, rich messaging and conversational experiences — all within the standard texting app. It’s particularly well suited for customer service environments and marketing campaigns where engagement is a priority.
RCS shouldn’t be seen as an SMS replacement, however, as there are certain cases where the latter is more practical and reliable. SMS has greater reach than RCS because texts can be delivered to remote areas with no Wi-Fi and virtually every mobile phone can receive SMS. RCS still isn’t available everywhere, so for time-sensitive notifications such as OTPs, SMS can be a more reliable option.
Ultimately, when supported by appropriate security and compliance measures, using RCS and SMS in combination can help financial institutions balance customer experience, trust and operational effectiveness.
To learn more about using RCS alongside SMS to achieve the best communication outcomes, read our case study, Beyond the Hype: Early Lessons from RCS for Business Campaigns.
