It’s no surprise that digital banking has surged, as more consumers manage their lives through mobile devices. What is surprising, however, is how widely adopted the most popular services have become. Beyond features like peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, many digital banking users are also engaging with tools like fraud alerts and credit score monitoring.
According to the Chase Digital Banking Attitudes Survey, 78% of consumers use banking apps weekly, and two-thirds have used P2P apps—up from 40% in 2020.
Digital financial health tools are also gaining traction. More than two-thirds of respondents say they value digital alerts—such as texts and emails—that notify them of potential fraud. Half use digital budgeting tools at least once a week. Meanwhile, credit score monitoring has seen a notable increase in adoption, rising to 52%, up 11% over the past five years.
The Search for a Single App
The vast majority of consumers prefer having these functions consolidated within a single app—even as their financial lives become increasingly fragmented across financial institutions, non-bank fintechs, and personal finance tools.
According to data from Javelin Strategy & Research, 61% of banked consumers have relationships at two or more financial institutions, and 67% use one or more third-party finance apps.
“Consumers would prefer to manage all that in one place, but that’s not currently reflected in their behavior, probably because reality doesn’t adhere to their preferences,” said Dylan Lerner, Senior Analyst in Digital Banking at Javelin. “They might use their bank’s mobile app for basic transactional banking activities but use Venmo for P2P, Credit Karma to check their credit score, and Robinhood for investing. That’s a lot of ground to cover for one mobile banking app. Meanwhile, each fintech builds their app around each individual features.”
Millennial Dreams
Digital banking usage is even higher among millennials, who use online banking features more than other generations. According to the Chase survey, three-quarters of respondents said they have used P2P payment methods, a 21% increase from 2020. An even higher percentage reported using credit monitoring tools.
Younger generations have also shown interest in AI assistants, virtual reality, and other advanced technologies in their banking experiences. Nearly half of millennial and Gen Z respondents said they would appreciate having access to AI assistants to help manage their finances.
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