Mar 17 2025
Management

What Does the Finance Bank of the Future Look Like?

Customers still want branches, but not in the way they used to. Here are five trends driving in-person financial services.

The number of FDIC-insured commercial bank branches increased in 2023 after more than a decade of steady decline, prompting a quick renaissance of the bank branch. Then, 2024 saw bank closures return as IT leaders grew online platforms.

Despite these ups and downs, one thing has held steady, experts say: Financial services consumers still want branches, just not in the way they used to. 

Accenture’s 2023 banking consumer study reveals that 66% of consumers like seeing branches in their neighborhood, and 71% seek out branches to solve specific and complicated problems. 

DISCOVER: Why a tech partner can guide financial services towards foward-thinking solutions.

“Having some type of physical presence in a market will remain important, but the branch of the future won’t look like your grandfather’s,” writes Michael Abbott, global banking lead at Accenture, in a Forbes blog. “A branch presence can help increase customers’ sense of safety and soundness about their deposits.” 

To succeed, IT leaders will need to reimagine the traditional brick-and-mortar model, blend the distinction between the digital and physical realms, and add a human touch to customer service. Here are five trends that are shaping bank branches of the future.

1. Advisory and Relationship-Based Banking

Digital banking is inherently transactional, so branches can fulfill an essential human need by fostering relationships. Although customers might make deposits and withdrawals online and via mobile, they will visit branches for high-value advisory services around mortgages, retirement, wealth management and small-business banking.

“A branch experience in which customers can walk in and have a casual conversation with an employee gives banks the opportunity to understand the customer’s financial goals and act as a trusted financial advisor — not just a provider,” writes fintech expert Lauren Crossett in Forbes.

“Bank branches choosing to invest in transforming their branches with technology and a community-first approach are positioning themselves to earn customers’ trust, foster loyalty and establish themselves as trusted advisors in their communities,” she writes.

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2. Community and Educational Hubs

To remain relevant, branches must strengthen their local presence in communities and become places to connect, educate and handle financial transactions.

Take the Capital One Café. The financial services company opened locations around the country for people to use however they wish, even if they aren’t banking. “Café ambassadors” are available for financial questions or account needs.

Chase, recognizing that people in historically underserved populations often lack access to banking, established a nationwide network of community centers

Bank of America plans to open more than 165 U.S. branches by the end of 2026, offering customers in less urban areas an alternative to mobile banking. 

“These locations are less transaction-focused, a little bit more relationship-based, so that we can really understand the needs of our local residents and ensure that we’re actually delivering on them,” says Ariel Pierre, who leads Chase’s consumer banking branch formats strategy, in a Fast Company blog

For affluent customers, in fall 2024 JPMorganChase announced plans to open 30 financial centers to provide highly personalized wealth management service. 

71%

The percentage of consumers that seek out branches to solve specific and compilated problems.

Source: accenture.com, “Banking Consumer Study: Reignite Human Connections,” March 21, 2023

3. More Self-Service and Automation

In the branch of the future, routine banking transactions will be handled through self-service kiosks, mobile apps and interactive digital interfaces.

“Tools for ATMs, online and video banking have replaced manual transactions that were once done by tellers,” Crossett writes.

Marc Healy of The Element Group, a firm that designs, builds and remodels banks, explains that consumers have been trained to use digital tools with minimal support. “However,” he writes, “digital users have come to expect their in-person customer service experiences to be just as fast, convenient, and hassle-free.”

Healy says that self-service kiosks can take deposits, scan documents, authenticate users and display product demos. Virtual teller agents can also remotely access the branch via two-way video.

RELATED: Checkout the biggest financial tech trends of 2025. 

4. AI and Data-Driven Personalization

Artificial intelligence can power personalization for bank branches. AI can automatically comb through vast amounts of data to surface insights for better customer service

“Using AI-powered algorithms, we can observe individual behaviors, interests and demographics to identify those actively seeking financial products or services,” Erin Pryor, a First Horizon Bank executive, tells The Financial Brand. “Our bankers can use this information to enhance their conversations and provide better solutions for clients.”

AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants inside the branch can answer customer questions and guide people to the right services, creating a seamless blend of digital and in-person support. The technology can also help banks optimize their business.

Gen AI can act as an assistant or a coach to employees by helping them do their jobs more efficiently and ultimately enabling them to focus on strategic, high-impact activities,” write Google Cloud’s Zac Maufe and Toby Brown in a company blog.

5. Security and Fraud Prevention

As branches integrate more digital services and automation, IT leaders must implement more protective measures to safeguard financial information. 

For instance, machine learning can help banks root out fraud by analyzing transactions in real time to identify normal customer behavior and flag deviations for employees to review.

Zero-trust architecture can also protect data by requiring that all users — including customers and employees — and devices be authenticated and continuously validated. 

Biometric scanning of a customer’s face or fingerprint can provide quicker and easier alternatives to other security methods, such as passwords and multifactor authentication. This can help ensure that a user’s experience with a branch is frictionless. 

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