Bank of Nova Scotia said that its new digital technologies will allow it to raise its efficiency and, in turn, slash operating costs.

Most of the additional efficiency improvements relate to lower operating costs, giving Scotiabank more confidence in meeting its medium-term financial targets. These gains in productivity are expected to improve profitability in the medium term, the Toronto-based bank said Feb. 2.

In the second quarter of 2016, the bank estimated that its structural cost program would deliver a 200- to 250-basis-point improvement in its productivity ratio by 2019. However, efforts to further digitize the bank are expected to add a further 100 basis points beyond 2019, giving Scotiabank a productivity ratio of about 50% for 2021.

Scotiabank intends to introduce the new digital technologies not only in Canada but in its other key markets of Mexico, Peru, Colombia and Chile, President and CEO Brian Porter said.