Neo Financial
- 5xfaster response times, reducing customer wait times and improving their overall experience.
- 50%reduction in human-agent workload, allowing agents to focus on complex inquiries.
- 600,000+customer interactions resolved each year.
Neo Financial scales support with an AI agent and cuts wait times by 5x
Neo Financial is a rapidly growing Canadian fintech company that provides innovative digital banking solutions. As its user base expanded, Neo needed to ensure that the customer experience remained seamless and efficient. However, its reliance on voice and email-based support was becoming unsustainable, leading to long wait times and operational inefficiencies.
To address these challenges, Neo introduced an AI agent to streamline its support operations, reduce reliance on human agents, and dramatically improve response times. By integrating automation into its service model, Neo reduced response times by 5X, cut inquiries by 50%, and shifted from an 80% voice-heavy model to a more balanced 50/50 split between chat and voice.
the challenge
Neo Financial’s rapid growth, including a partnership with HBC that introduced 2.5 million new customers into the Neo ecosystem, significantly increased demand on its customer support operations. Traditional channels like voice and email could not scale efficiently, leading to long wait times and higher operational costs.
"When we signed a partnership with HBC—one of the largest retailers in Canada—we suddenly had 2.5 million HBC customers interested in our financial services. Our volumes went through the roof, and I knew we had to make changes fast."
At the time, 80% of customer inquiries came through voice support, requiring manual authentication and extended handling times. As a result, customers were waiting close to 10 minutes to receive assistance. This reliance on human agents for routine inquiries was unsustainable and prevented Neo from scaling its support efficiently.
introducing the AI agent
To create a more scalable and responsive support system, Neo introduced an AI agent through Ada’s AI customer service platform, reducing dependence on voice and email while improving service speed and accessibility.
"We went from two channels—phone and email—to really thinking about how we could support our customers through real-time resolution. That’s when I joined forces with Ada to add chat to our suite of channels. In the back of my mind, I was really trying to get rid of email because it just wasn’t effective for resolving customer issues quickly.”
Neo’s goal was not to replace human agents but to ensure faster, more accessible, and more secure support. Chat was integrated directly into Neo’s app and web portal, allowing customers to authenticate instantly, reducing friction and enabling real-time resolution. By automating inquiries and maintaining seamless human escalation when necessary, Neo was able to reallocate human agents to handle more complex customer needs, improving overall service efficiency.
results and impact
Neo Financial’s shift to an AI agent on the chat channel resulted in significant efficiency gains and a more scalable, customer-friendly support model.By transitioning a large portion of inquiries to chat, Neo reduced response times by 5X, from nearly 10 minutes to under 2 minutes. Customers who previously waited on hold for extended periods could now resolve their issues in real time, significantly improving satisfaction.
With an AI agent on chat, Neo saw a 50% reduction in human-agent workload, allowing support teams to focus on more complex and high-value customer interactions.
"Some of the immediate effects we saw after deploying Ada were that we saw a 50% reduction in agent-first interactions across all of our channels because our customers had a preference for chat. As customers became more familiar with chat, they didn’t need us to be as hands-on anymore—that’s why we’re invested in upskilling and coaching the AI agent to handle more complex issues."
Customer trust was also a critical component of Neo’s success. By ensuring that the AI agent experience was intuitive, reliable, and securely integrated, customers became increasingly comfortable using it as their preferred support channel.
"One of the things in banking that is always a challenge with customer experience and using technology,” Burch explained, “is how to effectively build trust as we innovate and look at new solutions. Ada allowed us to get that instant response when customers ran into friction, which helped build trust and loyalty." With an AI agent, Neo’s customer satisfaction scores (CSAT) improved, with higher scores for automated interactions compared to traditional chatbots.
"We measure CSAT at multiple touchpoints—one for AI interactions and another for human escalations. Customers give higher CSAT scores for interactions with an AI agent compared to traditional chatbots. It feels more natural and useful."
looking ahead
As customer behavior continues to evolve, Neo is exploring opportunities to expand automation beyond chat into voice interactions. Neo Financial’s experience serves as a blueprint for businesses looking to scale customer support without sacrificing service quality.
"We do think that there's lots of value in voice automation. We’re just monitoring when customers are ready for it, which I anticipate won’t be that long—maybe within the year."
"My biggest piece of advice?” Burch said, “Don’t just ‘plug and play’ an automation solution and hope it works. You have to be intentional about designing it for your brand, your customers, and your business goals."
Neo’s transformation was never just about reducing agent workload—it was about creating a faster, more efficient, and more customer-friendly support model. By integrating an AI agent, Neo successfully eliminated long wait times, reduced reliance on human agents for resolutions, and built a scalable solution that supports long-term growth. For companies looking to grow without compromising service, Neo Financial’s journey offers a clear, data-driven model for success.