The BAI 2026 Banking Outlook is a snapshot of how financial institutions are thinking about the year ahead. Key topics for this year include deposit competition, rising customer anxiety, and increasing expectations for tech.
Banking leaders can learn a lot about the current state of the customer experience from this report. Many of the challenges outlined, like deposit retention to digital adoption, are increasingly shaped by how both customers and employees experience the bank day to day.
Below are several key highlights from the outlook, along with what they signal for customer experience in 2026.
Deposits Are Being Won or Lost on Experience
Deposit growth sits at the top of the industry’s priority list. While rates and fees still influence decisions, customers do not make choices based on pricing alone. They notice how easy it is to open accounts, how clearly information is explained, and how supported they feel when something changes or goes wrong.
When experiences feel confusing or inconsistent, customers become more willing to move their money, even when the financial difference is small. Confidence matters. In this environment, customer experience plays a direct role in retention and growth rather than acting as a downstream outcome.
Digital Investment Must Reduce Friction, Not Add It
The report points to early signs of digital fatigue. Customers depend on digital banking, but they are far less tolerant of friction than they once were. More features do not necessarily translate into better experiences, especially when they increase complexity.
Customers want digital tools that behave intuitively, provide clear guidance, and resolve issues quickly. Financial institutions that focus on simplicity and ease tend to build stronger trust over time. Those that do not measure how customers experience digital channels often miss where frustration quietly builds.
Customer Anxiety Is Raising Expectations for Communication
Rising financial stress is another theme running through the report. In uncertain conditions, customers pay closer attention to how their bank communicates. Transparency, clarity, and consistency take on added importance.
Financial institutions that acknowledge this anxiety and communicate in a steady, proactive way often strengthen relationships. Those that rely only on transactional messaging risk feeling disconnected when customers are looking for reassurance and context.
Branches Continue to Shape Trust in Critical Moments
Despite years of digital progress, branches still matter, particularly for complex or high-stakes interactions. For many customers, in-person conversations remain an important foundation of trust.
When branch experiences align with what customers expect from the brand, they reinforce confidence. When they feel inefficient or disconnected, the impact can be lasting. The value of branches today is less about frequency and more about how well those moments are handled.
AI Will Be Judged by the Experience It Creates
The report suggests 2026 will mark a shift from AI experimentation to practical use. From a customer perspective, AI shows up in simple but meaningful ways: faster responses, more relevant interactions, and smoother handoffs between channels.
If those experiences feel inconsistent or confusing, customers notice quickly. The success of AI initiatives will ultimately be measured by whether they make banking feel easier and more reliable, not just more automated.
Turning Insight Into Action for 2026
The 2026 Banking Outlook makes one thing clear: Many financial institutions will face similar pressures in the year ahead, but results will vary based on how well institutions understand and manage the CX.
Customer experience improves when it is approached intentionally. That starts with collecting feedback from both customers and employees, continues with analysis that highlights where confidence and effort are gained or lost, and is sustained through training that helps teams act on those insights. Benchmarking, Voice of the Customer, and Voice of the Employee programs each contribute to this discipline, providing both internal clarity and external context.
For leaders planning for 2026, the question is no longer whether customer experience matters. The real question is whether they have the insight and structure needed to improve it with purpose.Now is the time to move from insight to action. To see how CSP helps financial institutions collect experience data, analyze what matters most, and train teams to improve outcomes, schedule a demo and begin turning customer experience into a measurable advantage.