A new industry report has revealed that 71 per cent of Nigerians consider in-app support on banking applications ineffective, highlighting persistent usability challenges in the country’s growing digital finance space.

The report, titled State of UX in Financial Apps: Nigeria Report 2025, was released on Wednesday by Interswitch.

The study, which surveyed hundreds of banking app users and included interviews and technical assessments based on global usability standards, found that while digital banking adoption continues to rise, the quality of in-app support has not improved at the same pace.

According to the findings, many users struggle to get timely and effective assistance within their banking apps. Respondents cited unclear error messages, lack of real-time guidance and complex navigation as major sources of frustration.

Speaking on the report, the Executive Vice President, Group Marketing and Communications at Interswitch, Cherry Eromosele, said user experience had become central to digital financial services.

“User experience is no longer a cosmetic layer in financial services; it is the product itself. As digital channels become the primary way people engage with financial institutions, trust, simplicity, and reliability are what truly differentiate one platform from another.

“This report reflects real user voices and rigorous analysis and is intended to help banks and fintechs design services people genuinely understand, trust, and enjoy using,” Eromosele said.

The report noted that while basic transactions such as fund transfers perform relatively well, services like bill payments, airtime purchases and error resolution remain problematic for many users.

It added that most apps fail to provide intuitive guidance or immediate solutions when technical issues occur.

The evaluation applied usability principles developed by usability consultant Jakob Nielsen, assessing financial apps across parameters such as system feedback, error prevention, consistency, flexibility and accessibility.

Despite improvements in reliability and transparency, the study identified significant gaps in user-centred design, urging banks and fintech firms to prioritise simplicity and clearer support systems.

Interswitch said the report was aimed at financial institutions, fintech operators and regulators, stressing that improving user experience is critical to building trust, deepening adoption and sustaining growth in Nigeria’s digital banking ecosystem.