COVID-19 changed a lot about our lives. It turned us into mask-wearing, stay-at-home people who baked our own bread and horded toilet paper. Ultimately, it forced us to look for new ways to do old things, including financial transactions. Thus, the pandemic brought about a boost in digital banking that is set to pave the way for the future of financial institutions (FIs) and their communications with account holders.

Digital banking in the last 12 months

Digital account opening more than doubled from 2019 to 2020. While digital banking was already a growing trend, it experienced a huge uptick during the pandemic. In fact, one study showed a 200% increase in online accounts in April 2020 alone. Plus, digital-only account holders skyrocketed by 11% over the course of 2020, compared to 2019.

The change to digital has not, however, changed everyone's behavior completely. Some traditional account holders still want some face-to-face interaction. That said, more than one-third of those opening new accounts online have been those over 60. This statistic shows a fundamental change in banking habits for everyone, including older Americans. Having learned they can open their accounts online, they seem likely to continue to do so.

Digital banking in the next 12 months

The coming year will find FIs taking advantage of changed consumer behavior to focus on new digital service demands. Account holders expect newer and more advanced banking apps that maintain the personability of in-person banking. Thus, traditional brick-and-mortar FIs and even fully digital FIs will continue to see their most rapid growth in digital bank accounts.

This increase may have come in part out of the pandemic. However, an even more important cause is the sheer convenience and service richness digital banking offers account holders. In order to thrive in the future, FIs will need to integrate their digital products into their account holders' lives to maximize convenience and highlight customization.

Although convenience is surely first among the benefits of digital banking, it also allows people to go cashless. Furthermore, they can do it while enjoying a richer array of products and services thanks to technology.

Banking as a platform and Larky

One of the more successful innovations in digital banking is the banking as a platform (BaaP) partnership between FIs and fintech companies. This partnership should continue to bring new products for account holder use and be an essential feature of the future.

The Larky nudge® engagement platform can help FIs play in the digital world with the big enterprises. The Larky nudge® platform can support any unique marketing campaign that an FI runs through real-time and real-place lock-screen notifications.

For example, nudge® can promote mortgage loans. By posting contextually relevant notices about an FI's available home loans, they provide immediate relevancy and value to their account holders. They receive pertinent information when they visit an open house. As a result, the account holder, engaged with the FI and their offerings, seeks the loan from that FI when they're ready to move forward. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your FI grow in the world of digital banking.

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