Consumers looking beyond banks for advice: CGI report

Consumers are increasingly leaning toward financial service providers that offer value-added services such as advice, rewards and personal finance management, a report from CGI finds.

The report, called “Today’s financial consumer: Open for business,” says banks need to innovate and improve services to compete with more nimble competitors. They can also partner with fintech and technology firms to meet rising consumer expectations.

The report covers the results of CGI’s 2017 global financial consumer survey of 2,250 respondents across nine countries.

Read:

• Fintech app lets Canadians invest spare change
• TD acquires artificial intelligence company
• Expect clients to adopt financial apps in 2018

The consumers surveyed want new, innovative digital services: 33% perceive value in robo-advice, while 80% are interested in services that enhance protection from fraud and identity theft.

A majority of consumers still prefer to receive new services from their current primary bank, but that’s changing. In just 12 months, the survey says, there’s been up to a 15% decline in the number of consumers who prefer to receive new services from traditional bank providers.

More than half of respondents are open to using third-party service providers for everyday banking services such as “looking for advice on financial products” or “resolving a fraud or security issue.”

Still, security remains a top concern for consumers, creating an advantage for banks that build a reputation for security, the report says. The survey shows the growing opportunity for banks to provide a holistic channel that brings together digital and personal services.

Other key survey findings include:

• 73% of consumers are open to using a single bank account for all payments linked with a mobile app, without having the option of using alternative accounts;
• 40% of consumers don’t mind where their money is stored as long as they have access to it;
• 43% of consumers would rather have a single mobile payments service across accounts rather than one per account; and
• Two-thirds of consumers feel they have lost a personal connection with their bank, but the same fraction also feel long-term relationships with their banking partner is important.

Read the full report here.

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.