Environmental Impact Platform for Climate Action
UBA Redd App (Mobile Banking)
Pan-African Banking with Mood-Based Personalization
Transformed satisfaction from 33% to 85% across 20 countries, driving €15M revenue and 43% digital growth.
Project Summary
Led the complete redesign of UBA's flagship mobile banking application serving 50M+ customers across 20 African countries and 3 international markets. The existing solution faced 67% customer dissatisfaction. By introducing revolutionary personalization features including mood-based themes and cultural adaptation, combined with infrastructure-resilient architecture for varying network conditions, I transformed REDD into Africa's most advanced mobile banking platform, setting new standards for culturally-adaptive fintech design.
Timeline
12 Months
Market
Africa: Climate Tech, Sustainable Finance
Role
UX Lead
Team
8-person cross-functional team
Additional Context
4 languages | 50M+ customers
Strategic Objectives
Transform mobile banking experience across 20 African markets through personalization and cultural adaptation.
Transform User Experience
Increase user satisfaction from 33% to 80%+ and drive mobile banking adoption to 89% across UBA's Pan-African operations.
Pioneer Personalization
Introduce first-to-market theme intelligence system (Dark, Light, Red modes) reflecting user emotional and professional contexts.
Ensure Cultural Adaptation
Create unified yet culturally adaptive experience serving diverse African markets while maintaining brand consistency.
Achieve Business Impact
Drive 43% increase in digital transaction volume and €15M annual revenue increase through improved engagement.
Cultural Intelligence System
Developed comprehensive personalization strategy respecting cultural diversity while creating unified brand experience:
Theme Intelligence System:
- Mood-Based Themes: Dark, Light, and Red themes reflecting user emotional and professional contexts
- Cultural Color Adaptation: Theme colors adjusted for cultural significance across different markets
- Context-Aware Switching: Automatic theme suggestions based on time, location, and usage patterns
- Social Appropriateness: Theme recommendations considering professional vs. personal usage contexts
Regional Adaptation:
- Language-Aware Interface Design: Beyond translation—interface patterns adapted to language reading patterns
- Contextual Content Delivery: Financial education and features relevant to local economic contexts
- Cultural Privacy Modeling: Personalization boundaries respecting different cultural attitudes toward financial privacy
Infrastructure-Resilient Architecture
- Adaptive Performance: App performance scaling based on network conditions and device capabilities
- Offline-First Features: Core banking functions available without continuous connectivity
- Progressive Enhancement: Advanced features loading when network and device conditions permit
- Data-Conscious Design: Minimized data usage while maintaining rich user experience
Pan-African Research Strategy
Conducted comprehensive research across UBA's operational footprint:
- 234 user interviews across 12 African countries and 3 international markets
- Cultural banking behavior analysis identifying regional financial management patterns
- Technology adoption research understanding device capabilities and connectivity constraints
- Aspirational design workshops exploring how customers wanted to feel while banking
User Experience Transformation
Customer satisfaction and engagement improvements
Increase in user satisfaction across all 20 markets
Increase in app engagement (daily active user sessions and time spent)
Reduction in support tickets through improved self-service
Faster transaction completion through streamlined user flows
Business Impact
Revenue growth and operational efficiency gains
Annual revenue increase directly attributed to improved mobile banking engagement
Increase in digital transaction volume
Mobile banking adoption achieving mobile-first banking across African operations
Reduction in operational costs through decreased branch dependency
The Biggest Learning
Personalization and cultural adaptation are not just features—they're fundamental differentiators in diverse markets. What succeeded wasn't just technical excellence but deep respect for cultural contexts and user identity expression through design.
What I Would Do Differently
Invest more in voice banking capabilities from the start. With 20+ countries and multiple languages, voice interfaces could have provided even more accessible experiences for users with limited literacy or visual impairments.
Cultural Design Breakthrough
The theme system's success validated that African users view app appearance as personal identity extension, not just preference. This insight influenced how we approach all personalization features—focusing on empowerment and self-expression rather than just customization.
Vendor Relationship Management
Transforming a Level 1 design maturity vendor through education and collaboration proved that design leadership extends beyond internal teams. The "seeing is believing" approach with stakeholders worked equally well with external partners.
Long-Term Platform Foundation
The design system and cultural adaptation frameworks became foundational for UBA's digital transformation, influencing projects worth €50M+ and establishing UBA as a design-forward institution in African financial services.
Cross-Industry Influence
The project's cultural intelligence approaches are now referenced by other African fintech companies, extending impact beyond UBA and influencing how the global fintech industry approaches emerging market design.