Banking on Trust: Consumer Expectations for Financial Providers

Trust remains the top factor consumers consider when deciding where to deposit and manage their money. Fifty-eight percent of respondents in MX’s latest survey of 1,053 U.S. consumers ranked the level of trust they feel regarding a provider as one of the most important factors. 

Consumers aren’t just looking for a provider to keep their money safe. Trust also means safeguarding their personal data. It means helping them better understand and manage their finances. And, it means focusing on delivering products and services that drive positive outcomes to help them meet their financial goals. 

Today, trust must be earned and nurtured throughout the money experience. It is what forms the foundation for digital adoption and engagement — which leads to higher consumer satisfaction rates, builds loyalty, and drives business growth. 

According to the 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer, the financial services industry as a whole is one of the least trusted industry sectors in the world, ranked only above social media. As an industry, we can do better — and we’re headed in the right direction. 

In August 2022, we asked consumers if they believed their providers have their best interests at heart. At the time, only 44% responded yes. Now, that number has risen nearly 20% — today, 61% stated they believe their providers have their best interest at heart. In addition, 66% stated they trust their providers to ‘do the right thing.'

So who do consumers trust the most? And to what extent?

National banks ranked most trustworthy to securely manage financial data: Fifty percent of consumers ranked national banks as the organizations they would trust the most to securely manage their financial data, followed by credit unions (19%), and local or regional banks (10%). Only 3% said they would trust tech companies, such as Apple, Google, and Amazon, the most to securely manage their financial data.

Men trust financial providers more than women. Across several dimensions, men consistently rated their level of trust higher than women. While the survey didn’t get into the reasons why, there may be an opportunity for financial providers to do more to build trust with women. 

Consumers trust financial providers to protect them from fraud. Consumers lost nearly $8.8 billion to scams last year, over a 30% increase from 2021 according to The Federal Trade Commission. Fraud and data breaches have also reached all-time highs. So, it’s no surprise that 72% of consumers agree fraud is one of their biggest concerns. Fortunately, 74% of consumers trust their financial providers to help protect them from fraud and other security risks.