The American public’s confidence in banks has been on the decline, but generally, adults appear to be satisfied with the institutions that provide their financial accounts. According to survey results [pdf] from KPMG, almost three-quarters of US adults are either extremely (35%) or very (38%) satisfied with their bank or payment account provider.
Satisfaction is generally consistent across gender, generation and income segments, per the report, though appears to be slightly higher among women and older Americans.
Currently, traditional bank accounts are easily the preferred financial account type. Some 79% said that they tend to keep most of their spending money in traditional accounts, compared to about one-third (32%) who cited online or mobile payment platforms as being a preferred account type.
Digital bank accounts – which have been capturing the fancy of younger Americans – haven’t yet made the same kind of inroads. Some 16% of adults said that these are a preferred type of account, though Gen Zers and Millennials are more likely than the average to use these.
When choosing a financial account, respondents cited ease of use / convenience as their most important factor (59%), something that might suggest an opening for digital banks. Interestingly, data from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) indicates that while customer satisfaction with banks is generally high, people are least satisfied with the number and location of ATMs and bank branches. However in this survey, physical proximity remains low on the decision-making agenda (as do digital capabilities and offering).
Instead, beyond ease of use and convenience, the next-most important factor for adults when deciding where to keep their money is trust / security. This may be why traditional bank accounts remain much more widespread than digital bank accounts, as the former garners much more trust than the latter.
In other consumer finance results from the survey:
- Debit cards (43% share) outpace credit cards (35%) as the most frequently used payment method.
- About half of credit card users always pay their entire credit card balance every month.
- Close to half (45%) of adults use their phones to make in-person purchases at least some times, including 1 in 5 who do so always (5%) or often (16%).
About the Data: The results are based on a January-February survey of 991 US adults (18+).
