An earnings call Friday (Oct. 16) indicated that the new Truist CEO, Mike Lyons, wants a larger share of customers’ primary banking relationships.
Average deposits rose 3.6% from a year earlier and 1.4% from the second quarter, driven mainly by wholesale clients, according to an earnings presentation. Consumer and Small Business Banking deposits were up 1.2% year over year and essentially flat from the previous quarter. Deposit costs remained relatively stable, with the total cost rising three basis points sequentially to 1.59%.
Lyons said Truist wants its consumer bank to “win the DDA of every client across our branch footprint.” That effort will direct investment toward products and services that support checking relationships, including mobile banking, payments, credit cards, branches and ATMs, according to management commentary on the call.
The approach comes as more activity already moves through Truist’s digital channels. Digital transactions represented 71% of Consumer and Small Business Banking transactions during the quarter, up 290 basis points from a year earlier. Debit and credit card spending reached $32 billion, up 4.5% year over year, while Truist Assist chat volume rose 54% to 2 million.
Shares were up 2% in early trading Friday.
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The spending increase came even as Truist reduced parts of its consumer loan book. Average Consumer and Small Business Banking loans fell 2.4% from a year earlier. Management is shifting consumer lending toward products tied more directly to deposit relationships, including credit cards, home lending and unsecured loans, while moving away from national, single-product businesses.
Lyons said investment in the consumer bank will include “the branch network, ATM network, technology, mobile digital, performance-based marketing, an enhanced client-focused credit card platform, and a rewards platform.”
Eyeing Treasury Management
Treasury management is one area where executives said they see room to gain business. Lyons said Truist’s client penetration remains “small relative to peers.” Chief Financial Officer Mike Maguire said treasury management fees continue to grow, supported by product adoption and the sales pipeline.
Small business is another target. Lyons called it “a deposit machine where we are underpenetrated in lending.”
Management is also setting a more explicit measure for whether the deposit strategy is working. Lyons said a top-performing Truist would include “faster net new DDA account growth” and deeper treasury management penetration. The bank generated positive net new checking account growth during the quarter and year to date, and management said it plans to accelerate that pace through its new investments.
Credit quality outside the Regional Acceptance Corporation (RAC) sale remained relatively steady. Net charge-offs excluding RAC were 38 basis points, compared with a reported 77 basis points that included losses tied to the portfolio sale.
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