New Benchmarking Research Identifies Key Digital Trends in Retail Banking: AI, Mobile Payments and Personal Financial Management

NEW YORK, Aug. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- New benchmarking research from Corporate Insight (CI) finds that banks are focusing their mobile innovation efforts in three key areas: artificial intelligence (AI), mobile payments and personal financial management (PFM). CI's 2024 Bank Experience Benchmark research evaluates 20 leading banks across hundreds of digital attributes to provide a detailed analysis of the overall industry, as well as how firms compare in terms of functionality and usability. This year's research finds that, in the mobile banking space, firms are seeking to attract and retain customers with new features like AI-powered customer service, additional mobile payment options and personal financial management capabilities.

"While brand name and branch/ATM locations are the primary drivers for bank selection, mobile bank app users rated digital banking features as more important than recommendations, interest rates or sign-on bonuses," says Stephanie Sorage, Analyst at Corporate Insight. "The best-in-class digital features highlighted in this report show that increased convenience, whether it be in payment, PFM, or faster customer service, is a key focus for the industry."

Several trends highlighted in the mobile edition of the 2024 Bank Experience Benchmark focus on the theme of convenience. For better customer service, several firms have added AI-powered options: Wells Fargo introduced a mobile app virtual assistant, while U.S. Bank added a card tracker and upcoming bill prioritization to its virtual assistant. Firms are also competing in the payment space, with several firms rolling out new features from Paze and Google Wallet. PFM has seen the most aggressive expansion, with Chase, Bank of America, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo all recently enhancing their in-app spending analysis tools.

"The discontinuation of Mint and its popular budgeting tools in late 2023 created a gap that banks rushed to fill," says Olivia Jack, Bank Research Manager at CI. "Firms are transforming their in-app spending analysis tools into full budgeting tools, powered by account aggregation technology and delivering personalized insights. These holistic financial tools are a new area where banks can compete for customer engagement."

The report includes rankings of mobile experiences, overall and across six categories, on a 100-point scale. Truist (78 out of 100) takes first place. Its app earns high marks in two key categories—Account Information and Account Servicing—with core features such as extensive transaction details and seamless debit card controls alongside supplemental features like financial planning tools. Chase (77) and U.S. Bank (76) round out the top three, taking first place in the Money Movement and Account Information categories, respectively. Both firms offer robust transfer and payment management plus account servicing features, granting users greater flexibility over their money and accounts.

The Mobile Benchmark examines the following categories:

• Account Information
• Account Servicing
• Design & Navigation
• Money Movement
• Profile & Settings
• Support

Firms covered:

• Ally
• American Express
• Bank of America
• BMO
• Capital One
• Charles Schwab
• Chase
• Chime
• Citi
• Citizens Bank
• Discover
• Fifth Third
• Huntington
• PNC
• SoFi
• TD Bank
• Truist
• U.S. Bank
• USAA
• Wells Fargo

About Corporate Insight

Corporate Insight (CI) delivers competitive intelligence, user experience research and consulting services to the nation's leading financial services, insurance and healthcare institutions. As the recognized industry leader in customer experience research for over 30 years, our best-in-class research platform and unique approach of analyzing the actual customer experience helps corporations advance their competitive position in the marketplace.

For inquiries or to interview with an analyst, contact:

Patrick Flood

646-876-7535
[email protected]

SOURCE Corporate Insight