MUFG to enable customers to get voice-activated AI exchange rate predictions, stock forecasts

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (TYO:8306) is making its next steps into the world of new technology solutions. MUFG has just announced that a number of its companies will be offering compatibility with Amazon’s Alexa, enabling customers to access services through the hands-free, voice-activated Amazon Echo speaker.

MUFG’s online trading subsidiary kabu.com Securities will be among the companies to offer the futuristic voice-activated services, which will enable clients of the broker to get rankings of stocks likely to rise on a given day via the Echo speaker. Clients of Jibun Bank will also benefit from the new services and will be able to get AI exchange rate predictions through the Amazon Echo speaker.

The new service will be rolled out on phased basis following Amazon Echo’s Japan release. In the future, MUFG plans to expand the number of services compatible with Amazon Alexa amid expectations that demand for futuristic voice-activated services will continue to increase.

MUFG’s subsidiaries have been very active in adopting novel technology solutions. In April this year, kabu.com Securities said it would launch a special AI-powered solution for its clients. The tool, named “AlpacaSearch for kabu.com”, is developed jointly with AI startup AlpacaDB Inc and has been available to stock traders using Kabu Station Premium. And, in July this year, Kabu.com unveiled a partnership with fintech expert xenodata lab to deliver infographics showing the highlights about companies’ financial reports based on natural language analysis.

The adoption of new fintech solutions, however, has a dark side for human jobs. In September this year, MUFG’s President Nobuyuki Hirano, quoted by the Nikkei Asian Review, said 9,500 jobs will be automated in Japan. These jobs account for about 30% of the overall headcount nationwide at MUFG’s main subsidiary, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ. MUFG’s decision was dubbed an attempt to bolster productivity. Mr Hirano emphasized that the company will move employees who have been engaged in relatively simple work into more creative roles through retraining and other measures.