The Opportunity Ahead

For regional and community banks and credit unions, the future of primacy isn’t about legacy—it’s about anticipation.

With the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in U.S. history underway, a shifting labor force, and rising digital expectations, financial institutions are at an inflection point. Our 2025 Generational Trends in Digital Banking Study, Anticipatory Banking: Establishing Primacy Across Generations Through Digital Sales and Service—conducted in partnership with The Center for Generational Kinetics—reveals what consumers across generations are thinking, feeling, and expecting from their financial providers right now.

Based on the research, primacy is paralleled with debit card usage and online and mobile banking usage. Digital isn’t just a channel—it’s the brand experience. And the institutions that prioritize personalization, predictive intelligence, and excelling at the user experience are best positioned to win enduring trust and loyalty across every generation.

Understanding the Generational Mindset

Generation Z (Ages 22–29): The Digital-First Decision Makers

Generation Z (Gen Z) has never known a world without the internet. They’re mobile-first, values-driven, and expect instant, intuitive digital experiences. Loyalty is fluid—and tied directly to relevance, speed, and peer validation. Perceptions of this generation include:

• 68% currently bank with a financial provider because it was recommended to them by a friend or family member, significantly higher than any other generation.
• 50% say if it were easy for them to move their banking information (financial data such as money and billing history including automatic payments) to a new financial institution, they would change their primary financial provider, the highest of any generation.

• 24% expect to receive an inheritance sizable enough to pay off all of their debt and invest in the future.

How financial institutions can engage:

• Build intuitive, mobile-first onboarding that takes 5 minutes or less.
• Leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to offer personalized insights, fraud alerts, and goal-based nudges.
• Amplify social trust: Include peer reviews, influencer content, and community testimonials in digital outreach.

Millennials (Ages 30–45): The Experience-Driven Switchers

Millennials came of age during the rise of online banking—and they’ve seen it all. They are digital veterans with high expectations, and they have a low tolerance for friction. They value convenience, personalization, and solutions that match their fast-moving lives and evolving goals. Perceptions of this generation include:

• 62% of digital banking younger millennials would change financial providers if another company had a much better digital banking user experience, the highest of any generation.

• Gen Z and millennials are significantly more likely than Gen X and Boomers to expect their relationship with their primary or most important financial provider to grow.
• Among all financial products and services tested, older millennials are 15.4% more likely than baby boomers to be extremely or very interested in obtaining them in the next 12 months if they don’t currently have them.

How financial institutions can engage:

• Deliver personalized, value-aligned products or savings tools for first-time homebuyers.
• Use intelligent automation to streamline every interaction—from onboarding to credit qualification.
• Design for lifestyle: seamless mobile tools, savings gamification, and real-time rewards.

Gen X (Ages 46–59): The Financial Jugglers

Generation X is often overlooked, but they’re balancing family, aging parents, and peak earning years and are stretched across multiple financial priorities. They value reliability and service, but will engage digitally—if the experience is seamless and supports their complex financial needs. Perceptions of this generation include:

• They are significantly more likely than the other generations to be unsure if their primary financial provider will continue to be their most important financial provider in the next year.
• 58% do not expect to receive any significant inheritance.
• Only 35% say product recommendations are becoming much more or a little more relevant over the past year.

How financial institutions can engage:

• Lead with advanced planning tools: retirement modeling, college funds, insurance bundles.
• Reinforce relationships through humanized digital support—co-browsing, live chat, and empathetic interactions.
• Use transaction data to deliver relevant, timely offers that align with financial goals.

Baby Boomers (Ages 60–65): The Legacy-Makers

Baby boomers remain a vital segment, particularly as business owners and wealth creators. They bring deep financial relationships and traditional values—but they’re not digital skeptics. While they favor human connection and trust, they increasingly expect digital tools that support retirement, business succession, and legacy planning.  Perceptions of this generation include:

• Own 40% of U.S. small businesses—yet fewer than a third have an exit plan.
• They are significantly more likely than all other generations to expect their relationship with their primary or most important financial provider to remain the same.

• 69% expect to leave some inheritance to their family and loved ones, but most (54%) say it is likely not enough to change their current standard of living.

How financial institutions can engage:

• Position your bank or credit union as a trusted advisor: succession planning, estate strategies, and retirement guidance.
• Digitize legacy planning with trust tools, and guided onboarding for beneficiaries.
• Respect traditional habits while easing them into intuitive digital options with hands-on help and education.

From Reactive to Anticipatory: The New Path to Primacy

Despite the differences in perceptions and behaviors across the generations, consumers agree on the importance of digital engagement: 70% of digital banking Americans think a bank or credit union’s digital experience today reflects how much they care about their customers or members. To stay relevant and competitive, banks and credit unions must evolve from transactional service providers to data-informed digital bankers, using the Anticipatory Banking philosophy to predict account holder needs before they express them. With 46% from the research saying their institution could do more to anticipate their financial needs, the path to primacy and loyalty comes down to the digital channels, and the experience account holders have. Three ways capture cross-generational loyalty includes:

1. Onboard fast and with purpose: Make onboarding and digital account opening seamless and under five minutes using real-time verification and personalized welcome flows.
2. Engage through empathy: Leverage AI for smarter nudges and product suggestions while infusing your digital experience with human touch—real-time chat, proactive service, and authentic communication.
3. Grow by anticipating needs: Use transaction behavior to deliver meaningful, timely product recommendations and treat digital not as a utility, but as a revenue and loyalty engine.

To grow with every generation, financial institutions must meet each moment of truth with anticipation. That means investing in digital platforms that unify experiences across devices, infuse personalization into every interaction, and foster trust through meaningful guidance. Whether it’s Generation Z opening their first account or baby boomers preparing to retire, institutions that prioritize digital excellence through sales and service and personalized engagement will not only earn loyalty—they’ll lead the future.

The path forward isn’t just digital.
It’s predictive.
It’s personal.
It’s now.