As financial services companies consider the next wave of interaction technologies, TD Ameritrade is making the case for voice as a channel. Over the past year, the company has invested in voice-based tools to allow customers to learn more about their portfolios. In July, the company rolled out a series of voice-based digital tools to help customers manage their portfolios while driving.

At Bank Innovation Build on Wednesday, Sunayna Tuteja, head of digital assets and blockchain at TD Ameritrade, argued that the company’s foray into voice is a long-term play. While voice-based financial services transactions haven’t reached mass adoption, Tuteja explained that the company needs to keep abreast of channels that will become important over time. She noted that voice as a channel has a lot of upside potential across a range of customer segments irrespective of age, including disabled customers who would benefit from enhanced accessibility.

“Think about people with visual [challenges], think about people with dexterity issues, which is only going to get more and more pervasive as our demographics age,” she said. “How do ensure that those consumers have the same access to capital markets?” 

Tuteja referenced the role of popular voice-based tools, including Amazon Alexa, to explain the role they can play in advancing financial education. 

See also: TD Ameritrade launches in-car investment ‘experiences’ using voice, AI

Tuteja argued that the goal is not to push customers to access every aspect of banking and financial services through voice, but to offer customers more options. She emphasized that voice makes banking accessible to a larger swath of customers. 

“Voice-driven conversations give [trading] more humanity and emotion and essence,” she said. “Our thesis is to build best ways for clients to access capital markets, and then they can choose how they want to get there.”