A report from McKinsey highlights a significant risk for banks, estimating that failure to adapt to the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) by consumers could result in losses of up to $170 billion.
As more banking customers turn to AI tools—especially agentic AI and autonomous bots—to enhance their financial management, this trend is expected to impact banks’ revenues from low-interest accounts.
Pradip Patiath, a senior partner at McKinsey, pointed out, “Imagine an AI agent suggesting, ‘You could save $2,000 a year by transferring your funds.’ Such technologies can effectively eliminate much of the inertia currently present in the system.”
The report reveals that a staggering $23 trillion of the $70 trillion in the consumer banking sector is tied up in zero-interest accounts. If banks do not evolve their services, this could lead to a reduction of up to 9% in net income, potentially bringing average returns below the cost of capital.
While the integration of AI could initially reduce operating costs by 15% to 20%, these advantages are likely to diminish over time due to rising competition.