Why your bank’s human connections with customers will be more important than ever in 2026

By Jeremy Thomas (pictured), Regional Vice President of Sales for ANZ at Backbase

Complementing your digital service offering with responsive, personalised service will help you attract and retain more business in the new year.

Is your institution pouring all its energies into optimising its digital banking experience, or preparing to do so in the very near future? If the answer is no, you’re in the minority.

Around Australia, financial services providers of all stripes and sizes are alive to the fact that today’s customers have largely turned their backs on the traditional branch banking model. So much so that more than 99% of customer-bank interactions are now completed via online platforms and apps, according to the Australian Banking Association’s latest research.

That extraordinary shift is compelling banks to concentrate on delivering seamless, personalised service across all their digital channels.

Those that fail to do so, instead forcing customers to endure the frustration of clunky or disjointed interactions, can expect to lose mind and market share to more future focused competitors.

Outstanding in-person support for high value customers

And yet…plus ca change, as the French put it: the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Despite the relentless drive to digital, relationship banking remains as vitally important as it ever was, to a handful of customers all the time and almost all customers some of the time.

High net worth individuals, for example, continue to expect and demand the personal attendance and attention of ‘their’ banker, on regular occasions throughout the year.

So do business owners whose enterprises use an extensive array of financial facilities, or need rapid access to additional funding to take advantage of emerging opportunities.

Personal service in life’s big moments

Then there’s the rest of us: average customers who are more than happy to do our everyday banking online but don’t necessarily want to self-serve when it comes to the big one-offs – think applying for a mortgage or investment loan.

At those milestone moments, we want the comfort that comes from sitting down with a person who’s familiar with our file and can provide us with reassurance the bank understands our needs and is there to support us to achieve our goals.

And it’s not just the boomers and Gen Xers wanting a little of that human touch. Many institutions are finding their digital native customers from Generations Y and Z are equally keen for in-person service, perhaps even more so than their older counterparts if the interaction involves their first step beyond simple transactional banking.

Supercharging old fashioned service with AI-powered engagement tools

How to deliver a banking experience that combines the best of both worlds – streamlined digital services and meaningful face-to-face contact – at scale is one of the $64 million questions forward thinking Australian institutions will need to address in 2026.

This is where an AI-powered banking platform comes into play. Partnering with a software vendor whose solution addresses the unique needs of the financial services sector can provide you with the tools you need to craft outstanding omni-channel experiences that encompass interactions in both the virtual and physical realms.

Ideally, you’ll choose an AI-powered platform that connects seamlessly with your core banking platform. This will allow you to implement personalised digital journeys and develop comprehensive customer ‘views’ that enable your advisers to hold impactful, value adding meetings with customers.

And if it’s from a best of breed supplier that’s invested in developing composable, pre-integrated customer experience and AI-powered engagement capabilities, you’ll be able to implement those blended journeys quickly and cost effectively – in a matter of mere months in many instances.

Ensuring your customer experience is on point in 2026

Digital convenience or old-fashioned personal service? In today’s times, Australia customers don’t want one or the other; they want a customised blend of both. And they’ll take their business to banks that can deliver it to them.

An AI-powered banking platform that enables you to deliver customised digital experiences and high impact face-to-face interactions can help you develop a reputation for service that’s swift, seamless and responsive, online and in real life.

If supercharging your relationships with the consumers and businesses that bank with your institution is a priority in the new year, it’s game changing technology that will help you stand out from the crowd.