Digital records management in the banking industry within the Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives region

Abstract

This paper assessed the management of digital records in commerce that has seen a rise in digitisation due to technological advancements. Therefore, specifically this paper focuses on the banking sector in the Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives (ESARBICA) region. Banks constantly review ways in which they could be more competitive in-service delivery and have an edge over their rivals. To have an advantage over their competitors, some banks have adopted Internet banking to provide services conveniently and effectively electronically, thus providing online banking or e-banking services. Such innovations may pose challenges related to effective records management, specifically digital records management. The purpose of this study was to investigate the contributions made by good digital records management practices in improving the banking experiences of customers within the ESARBICA region. This study’s objectives were to investigate the role of records management on internet banking, determine the challenges of managing resultant digital records associated with internet banking and develop a framework to aid in the management of digital records within banking institutions in ESARBICA. For data collection, the study adopted a systematic review of literature and employed a thematic data analysis approach. The main findings were that there is an exponential increase in the use of technology to conduct banking by ESARBICA member states; therefore, risks associated with security and data protection were a concern. The major recommendations were that banking institutions had to improve on data protection and security of information and develop regulatory standards’ frameworks that are in sync with legislative frameworks.