The Top Retail Banking Trends for 2025: Report

By Coconut Software - Mar 18, 2025

In a nutshell 🥥 As we enter 2025, retail banks face a rapidly evolving landscape with both new opportunities and persistent challenges. Economic factors, regulatory shifts, and fierce competition from digital-first fintechs continue to make the banking sector difficult to navigate in terms of earning and retaining customers. But while many traditional players struggle to adapt, the banks that lean into technology, AI enhancements, optimal omnichannel customer experiences, and branch staff optimization are poised for sustainable growth. Coconut Software’s 2025 Top Retail Banking Trends Report outlines all of the above, and more.

Unlock Your Bank’s Growth Potential with Coconut Software’s 2025 Trends Report

Are you a bank leader looking to action real strategies for revenue growth this year? 

Whether you’re looking to acquire new customers, drive operational efficiency, eliminate the friction across all of your customer channels, or boost CSAT score, Coconut Software’s 2025 Retail Banking Trends Report identifies key strategies and real use cases for helping you achieve all of the above.

What Challenges Do Retail Banks Face in 2025?

While the banking industry showed signs of recovery in 2024, retail banks are still experiencing some significant points of friction, including:

• A sluggish economy and shrewd consumers: As inflation and interest rates begin to ease, customer and deposit growth still remain modest. Consumers are still burdened by debt, making them cautious spenders and more discerning about which bank they will put their trust in—-making acquiring new customers harder than ever.
• The prohibitive costs of modernizing operations: Recruiting and retaining skilled branch, call center, and advisor staff is expensive. So too is optimizing efficiency by investing in new technology. While both are crucial to becoming a truly modern financial institution, many banks struggle with affording the associated costs, not knowing where to spend, and where to save.
• Increased competition from fintech players: Digital-only banking players are winning over new customers with faster, more convenient service available at multiple touchpoints. Traditional retail banks are seeing customer loyalty—and new customer acquisition—being driven down.
• Declining customer experience (CX): Even though it is the most crucial element in customer retention, customer satisfaction in banking is on the decline, leading to reduced loyalty, especially as customers expect more empathy and seamless omnichannel services from their dedicated financial institutions.

So: What to do? Navigating this challenging environment will require retail banks to action more than just operational adjustments. They’ll need bold, strategic moves that focus on modernization, efficiency, and customer-centricity. 

Enter Coconut Software’s 2025 Retail Banking Trends Report.

2025 Retail Banking Trends Report: What’s Inside 

Our 2025 Trends Report identifies six crucial areas that every bank should focus on to drive growth and overcome these challenges. Here’s a sneak peek at the key trends shaping the future of banking:

1. Streamlining Digital Account Openings

Nearly half of banks report inefficiencies in their digital account opening (DAO) processes, leading to high abandonment rates. In fact, some face a 50% abandonment rate if the account opening process takes more than a few minutes. This is a critical issue banks need to address to stay competitive. In the report, we explore actionable strategies to reduce friction, improve operational efficiency, reduce bank queues, and enhance the customer experience at this critical stage, including via bank appointment scheduling software.

2. Modernizing Mortgage Applications

As interest rates decrease, the mortgage market is poised for growth. However, traditional banks must compete with digital-first lenders that offer more convenient, streamlined mortgage applications. Our report dives into how banks can leverage technology like AI and automation to modernize mortgage applications, while still maintaining the personalized service customers expect. This balance could lead to increased conversion rates and market share.

3. Offering Omnichannel, Real-Time Service

Customer expectations for service have shifted dramatically, with consumers demanding real-time assistance and seamless transitions between digital and in-person interactions. Studies show that 70% of customers consider a consistent experience across all channels essential when choosing a bank. Our report examines how omnichannel service models can increase loyalty and customer satisfaction (and bank deposit growth) by providing personalized, efficient support—no matter the medium.

Plus 3 more insights into pressing topics like: 

• Hyper-personalization
• Improving branch operations with data, and 
• Empowering staff with AI to drive efficiency

Why You Should Read The 2025 Retail Banking Trends Report

In the midst of uncertain economic conditions and an increasingly competitive landscape, our *2025 Retail Banking Trends Report* offers banks a roadmap for growth. Whether you’re looking to reduce costs, enhance customer loyalty, or modernize your technology stack, this report delivers actionable insights to help you do all of this—and more. You’ll gain:

• Actual actionable insights: Get concrete strategies and checklists that will actually help you to streamline your digital account openings, enhance customer service, and improve branch operations—all of which can drive revenue growth in the year ahead.
• Tech-driven solutions: Learn how to leverage the latest in AI, data analytics, and automation to improve operational efficiency, reduce costs, increase bank deposits, and stay competitive with fintech ‘disruptors’.
• Customer-centric strategies: Understand the importance of customer loyalty, empathy, and personalized service in an age of declining customer satisfaction. Find out how omnichannel service models and personalization can help your bank meet evolving consumer expectations.
• Powerful stats and use cases: With real-world data and case studies, you’ll see how other banks are already leveraging these strategies to drive revenue growth, improve CX, and gain a competitive edge.
• At least three revenue-driving insights: Download the 2025 Retail Banking Trends Report and gain at least three revenue-driving insights that will help you understand how to connect with your customers through modern technologies and deliver personalized, efficient services will be critical to your success. 

Whether you’re looking to grow your customer base, deepen existing relationships, or optimize internal operations, this report will help you take decisive action to position your bank for sustainable growth.

Stay ahead of the curve in 2025 by downloading the report today!