Survey: Consumers Trust Banks Most With Personal Data

Whatever problems banks have — and there are many — trust isn’t one of them. In the U.S. and Canada, 86 percent of people said banks and financial institutions were the companies that they trust most with securely managing their data, according to a new study by Accenture.

That’s 10 times as many as those who put the most trust in payment companies (7 percent), mobile phone providers (2 percent), technology vendors (2 percent) or social media companies (1 percent).

Not only do consumers trust their bank, most are also not inclined to switch. In the January survey of 4,000 consumers, 81 percent said they wouldn’t change banks even if their local branch closed (up from 52 percent in a 2013 survey). And 34 percent said online is now the most important channel for banks to invest in, with 20 percent saying mobile was most important to them.

But that may be the end of the good news, According to the report, “Banking Shaped by the Customer,” 79 percent of consumers said their banking relationship was defined by simple transactions like paying bills and getting statements. Most go elsewhere for things like auto loans (70 percent), brokerage accounts (61 percent), retirement accounts (53 percent), financial advice (52 percent) and mortgage loans (52 percent), the survey found.

And consumers between ages 18 and 35 are an even more demanding crowd. While 92 percent of millennials say they’re satisfied with their current online banking, 18 percent have changed banks in the past year (compared with 10 percent of those age 35 to 54) — and one in six of those who switched went to an online-only bank. (A recent FICO survey also found that millennials are more likely than older consumers to try alternative banking services.)

Millennials also have very firm ideas about how they want banking services delivered: 67 percent want more seamless banking, 47 percent want tools and services from banks for creating and monitoring budgets, and 48 percent want video chat available on bank websites.