How we helped Sunwest Bank innovate in the US financial market
Founded in 1969, Sunwest Bank is an American community bank focused on serving privately owned small and medium-sized businesses in the western United States.
Luby became Sunwest Bank’s strategic partner in the development of several web and mobile applications. These solutions, tailored for both internal use and end customers, were created after identifying business opportunities.
We supported the entire product lifecycle – from concept creation, prototyping, and business validation to application development, maintenance, and day-to-day operations. Today, Luby manages a portfolio of seven projects for Sunwest Bank.
SNAP is a web application that enables new and existing Sunwest Bank customers to open accounts digitally in less than an hour. In the United States, the account opening process is often done manually at branches and requires extensive paperwork.
Luby has been involved with SNAP from product conception, creating prototypes and wireframes for business validation, through to development, testing, and current day-to-day operations.
With the launch of SNAP in 2021, Sunwest Bank became one of the few commercial banks in the US to offer digital account opening, making SNAP a game changer.
Loans is an online lending platform launched during the COVID-19 pandemic to address the growing demand for credit. The platform allowed customers to apply for loans and track their status entirely online, responding to the need for digital solutions at the time.
Luby worked on this project from ideation to prototyping, development, and testing. The Loans platform resulted in a 40% increase in Sunwest Bank’s new customers due to the ease of applying for loans. Impressively, 45% of these new customers remained loyal after the pandemic.
A Health Savings Account (HSA) is a special type of bank account that can be used to pay for qualified medical expenses, such as doctor visits, prescriptions, and treatments.
In the US, companies offer HSA benefits to their employees by contributing a fixed amount that can only be used for medical expenses.
Sunwest Bank identified a market opportunity to improve HSA administration for employers and employees, resulting in a platform where companies can digitally enroll employees, open accounts and make contributions. Employees can also use the platform for medical expense payments, reimbursement claims, and beneficiary management.
Luby was involved in the ideation, design, development, and testing of the platform. Sunwest Bank now uses the platform to manage its own employee HSA accounts.
Sunwest Bank provides banking services and products to the Homeowners Association (HOA) market – organizations of residents of neighborhoods or condominiums.
A key offering is providing banking data via APIs to HOA management platforms, allowing residents to access financing information and fee schedules.
Luby developed the platform and APIs for this service, including integrations with key technology partners such as Fiserv, Plaid, ID Analyzer, and LexisNexis. We continue to support the operation of the platform, adding new technology integrations and clients.
Luby has delivered numerous integrations with key technology partners for Sunwest Bank’s applications:
– Fiserv: Core banking solutions integrated into multiple Sunwest Bank applications for account opening, banking data access, transactions, and more.
– DriveWealth: End-to-end investment solutions.
– Plaid: Connects applications to users’ bank accounts for seamless transfers and transactions.
– Transnetwork: Facilitates money transfers and transaction processing between individuals, businesses, and financial institutions.
Our cyber security solutions ensure data and operational security by integrating with renowned industry players. These efforts support Sunwest Bank’s initiatives, including:
– LexisNexis Risk Solutions: Helps assess risk, prevent fraud, and make confident decisions. Luby integrated products such as Bridger and InstantID into Sunwest Bank applications to improve account opening and other processes.
– ID Analyser: A platform for verifying user identity against documents such as passports and driver’s licenses.
– Electronic Signature Platform: Enhances the security of remittance products, enabling secure money transfers from the US to Mexico.
Luby’s UX and UI teams worked on all products developed with Sunwest Bank, from concept to prototyping. We focused on ensuring a seamless user experience and usability for the bank’s customers.
Notable examples include the SNAP and Selfcare HSA projects, which demonstrate how our contributions positively impacted business outcomes and strengthened customer relationships.
Our partnership with Sunwest Bank includes two dedicated teams to maintain and support the bank’s operations. These teams – Team Blue and Team Green – comprise approximately 13 professionals, including developers, product managers, QA, designers, and technical leads.
Increase in new customers using the lending platform.
New accounts opened through SNAP.
Time to open an account with SNAP.
We’re the software development consultancy
that will be a game-changer
in your growth.