Deposits, loans, data and efficiency top the list of strategic priorities for community and regional financial institutions, according to a recent survey of CEOs conducted by Jack Henry.
“For 2023, the top priority is technology that improves deposit retention and acquisition,” said a study author. “That means options for automated savings and investments, the ability to receive real-time payments when FedNow launches, and shoring up deposit gaps among Gen Y and Gen Z with early paycheck access and mobile-only account opening that doesn’t require funding upfront.”
Improving digital products and services has been the focus over the past few years according to previous survey results, but that has shifted to modernizing tech infrastructure for strategic agility and the real-time data analytics necessary to fight fraud, improve user experience, and establish intra-day visibility into balance-sheet key performance indicators, especially deposit inflows and outflows, study authors said.
Seventy-nine percent of financial institutions plan to increase their technology spend over the next two years; digital banking, fraud and security, and data analytics are the top three technology investments planned. Banks’ top concerns include talent retention, net interest margin compression and regulatory changes. Ninety percent plan to embed fintech into their digital banking experiences, with 65% planning to embed payments fintech. Sixty-five percent plan to expand services for small and medium-sized businesses, with commercial lending topping that list. Phishing and real-time payments are the most concerning fraud/security threats. The survey gathered data from institutions with assets ranging from $500 million to $50 billion. Read the survey.
