Scotiabank

Client

Scotiabank

Services

Design Systems, Design Operations, UX/UI Design, Accessibility, Agile

Role

Product Design Lead

Team

Multidisciplinary team including product designers, researchers, behavioural scientists, product managers, and engineers.

Awards

BIMA Award Winner

Scotiabank set out to lead the Canadian financial services market by delivering the country’s first fully digitized home ownership experience. The goal was ambitious: drastically reduce the time required to apply for a mortgage while creating a customer-centric, seamless digital journey. We designed and launched eHOME, a unique digital mortgage experience that revolutionized the Canadian mortgage market.

Project Goals

Market Leadership: Become the first Canadian bank to offer a fully digital mortgage application process.
Customer Empowerment: Create a transparent, user-friendly experience built around customer needs.
Efficiency: Reduce mortgage application processing time from 30 days to under 30 minutes.
Scalability: Develop a flexible and scalable digital platform ready for future enhancements.

Phase 1

Discovery

We began by exploring the Canadian mortgage landscape to identify user pain points and market opportunities.

Conducted stakeholder interviews to understand business challenges and risk areas.
Researched user frustrations with long application times and jargon-heavy interfaces.
Benchmarked competitors to define whitespace and innovation opportunities.
Synthesized findings to shape problem statements and validate design hypotheses.

Phase 2

Define

Using insights gathered, we shaped a vision centred around clarity, speed, and confidence.

Mapped end-to-end journeys and identified friction-heavy interactions.
Facilitated co-creation workshops with stakeholders and customers.
Prioritised features for MVP based on user impact and technical feasibility.
Defined core principles: Clarity, Simplicity, and Supportive Guidance.
Produced rapid concept sketches and iterated through wireframes and prototypes.

Phase 3

Concept Validation

We validated our concepts through real-world testing with potential customers.

Conducted surveys and moderated user testing.
Tested confidence levels in submitting financial data.
Validated impact of behavioural nudges and clarity of next steps.
Refined UI copy and progression logic based on user feedback.

Phase 4

Agile Delivery

We worked in agile sprints to build and refine the eHOME experience in close collaboration with developers.

Delivered tightly scoped wireframes, annotated modules, and final UIs.
Introduced an atomic design system to ensure consistency across flows.
Supported QA and UAT with documentation and hands-on feedback.
Created tailored designs for multiple user paths and exception cases.

IMPACT

90% of users said they would use eHOME. 95% would recommend it to a friend or family member. End-to-end mortgage process cut to 30 minutes. Received national recognition for digital leadership. Set a new benchmark for financial service usability in Canada.

Final thoughts

Scotiabank’s eHOME project redefined how people apply for mortgages in Canada. What once took weeks now takes minutes, without compromising support or trust. With a scalable framework in place and early indicators of success, eHOME continues to evolve as a flagship example of customer-first design in the financial services sector.

Scotiabank

Project Goals

Discovery

Define

Concept Validation

Agile Delivery

90% of users said they would use eHOME. 95% would recommend it to a friend or family member. End-to-end mortgage process cut to 30 minutes. Received national recognition for digital leadership. Set a new benchmark for financial service usability in Canada.

Final thoughts

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