Perspectives
Ask the Expert Series | March 2026
Interviewer: Farid Jeeawody, Partner, Hall & Partners
Expert: Loribeth McCann, EVP, Managing Director, Escalent
In this edition of Hall & Partners’ Interview with an Expert series, Farid Jeeawody speaks with financial services leader Loribeth McCann about the trends shaping the future of banking, fintech, and financial services in 2026.
From AI-powered financial tools and open banking ecosystems to rising consumer expectations for trust, personalization, and seamless financial management, the discussion highlights a central tension: technology is accelerating innovation, but trust will determine which financial institutions succeed.
As AI-driven financial services reshape how people interact with banks, credit providers, and fintech platforms, designing financial experiences that empower customers while protecting trust is a considerable challenge for institutions.
Looking ahead: Financial Services trends shaping 2026
Q1: What emerging trends will shape the future of financial services and where is the industry least prepared?
Several trends shaping financial services today are tied directly to the rapid evolution of technology (especially AI) and the changing expectations that come with it.
Key shifts include:
AI-driven financial tools: Customers increasingly expect intelligent tools that help them monitor accounts, manage spending, and receive proactive financial guidance.
Seamless financial relationships: Consumers want their deposits, credit cards, loans, and investments to feel like part of one integrated relationship rather than separate products.
Customer empowerment through automation: Many consumers want financial tools that handle routine monitoring, alerts, and recommendations automatically.
Another important trend is open banking and financial integration. Customers are increasingly comfortable using multiple financial institutions and third-party fintech tools, as long as security and data protections are clear. Trust and security are now baseline expectations, particularly around fraud prevention and account protection.
The biggest gap today is delivering truly seamless relationships across financial products. Most financial institutions are still organized around product lines (credit cards, deposits, lending) rather than around the customer. That makes it difficult to provide the unified experience consumers expect.
AI will reshape expectations in financial services, but trust will decide who wins.
EVP, Managing Director, Escalent
Opportunities and Challenges in Financial Services
Q2: What are the biggest opportunities and challenges facing the sector right now?
One of the biggest opportunities lies in context-aware AI interactions. Consumers are no longer satisfied with simple chatbots. They expect digital assistants that understand their financial context and can offer proactive guidance based on their full financial profile. Another opportunity is finding the right balance between digital and human support.
Many consumers are comfortable starting interactions digitally.
But trust and loyalty often depend on knowing a human is available when needed.
Financial institutions that combine strong digital capability with accessible human support will stand out.
Another important shift is happening in financial services marketing and brand building. Consumers are less persuaded by big promises and more influenced by real proof: how a financial institution shows care in everyday moments.
The most successful financial brands will focus less on promoting technology and more on delivering emotional benefits such as:
peace of mind
confidence
feeling in control
Opportunities vs Challenges in Financial Services
Accelerating shifts in consumer behavior
Q3: Which shifts in consumer behaviour are accelerating fastest and where is the biggest gap between expectation and execution?
One major shift is growing comfort with financial automation. Consumers are increasingly willing to rely on:
automated budgeting tools
AI chat assistants
algorithm-based financial recommendations
As these tools prove reliable, customers will expect them to move beyond reactive support to anticipatory financial guidance. Another accelerating trend is the expectation of speed and immediacy.
Customers now expect:
real-time transaction updates
instant fraud alerts
faster credit decisions
Delays quickly erode trust.
Security expectations are evolving as well. Consumers want frictionless security: strong protection without additional effort. Innovations such as behavioral biometrics, adaptive authentication, and automated fraud detection are helping financial institutions move in that direction.
Another growing trend is aggregated financial ecosystems, where customers manage accounts from multiple institutions through a single platform.
Consumers want automation that empowers them, not systems that make them work harder.
EVP, Managing Director, Escalent
The power of insights
Q4: How can insights help financial institutions anticipate trends and make smarter strategic decisions?
We are living in a time of unprecedented technological advancement. Financial institutions now have access to enormous amounts of behavioral and transactional data. That data should be combined with primary customer insights to understand how consumers actually experience financial services.
Integrating these inputs helps institutions:
identify emerging customer needs
refine product experiences
ensure innovation does not undermine trust
But even in an AI-driven world, human insight remains essential. Data shows what customers do. Insights explain why those behaviors matter. Understanding the emotional drivers behind financial decisions helps brands design services that build confidence and loyalty, not just complete transactions.
Final provocation: What must Financial Services rethink?
Q5: If there is one thing the sector must rethink to stay relevant in 2026 and beyond, what would it be?
Financial institutions must shift from product-based account management to outcome-based financial guidance. Many financial wellness programs today exist outside the core banking experience, in educational tools or separate dashboards.
But customers increasingly expect guidance to be integrated directly into their everyday financial interactions. If institutions cannot deliver that experience, consumers will increasingly turn to third-party financial tools that do.
Key insights for Financial Services leaders
AI is redefining customer expectations and relationships, but transparency and control will determine who earns trust
Seamless and unified experiences will shape the next generation of winners
Consumers want automated, personalised support that simplifies and guides their decisions
Emotional value is a powerful differentiation in a world of technological transformation
Human insight remains essential for understanding true audience behaviours and motivations and designing trusted financial services
Conclusion
The future of financial services will be defined by the balance between technology and trust. As AI and automation reshape the industry, financial institutions must rethink how they design customer relationships, moving beyond product silos to create integrated financial ecosystems. The organizations that succeed will be those that combine technological innovation with human insight to deliver experiences that empower customers while strengthening trust.
FAQs
A: Institutions that combine smart technology with human reassurance will have a major advantage:
Deliver AI tools that provide real financial guidance, not generic responses
Ensure customers can quickly reach a human advisor when needed
Translate financial services into emotional outcomes like confidence and peace of mind
A: Because financial decisions are deeply emotional.
Consumers want financial services that help them feel:
secure
informed
in control
Understanding those emotional drivers is what allows institutions to design meaningful financial experiences.
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