How deposit accounts are the key to unlocking primary financial institution status

Even in an a la carte economy, establishing primary financial institution (PFI) status still matters. However, the task remains as challenging as ever.

Changing attitudes, spearheaded by Gen Z, have emphasized the priority of mobile-first connectivity. And maintaining PFI status could become even more challenging as traditional preferences for centralized financial activity fade in favor of modern and digital.

In April’s CBA Webinar, Blend PMM Darrell Noble, Head of Product and Consumer Banking Gaurav Nagla, and Group Manager of Solutions Engineering Bryan Knight demonstrate how Blend’s Deposit Accounts solution helps banks achieve PFI status, giving consumers more of what they want —- when and how they want it. Check out the webinar here to see for yourself.

Some of the more common goals that financial institutions should strive for on the road to obtaining PFI status are:

• Delivering exceptional value to customers
• Helping customers achieve financial goals
• Fostering relationships
• Achieving their own KPI/goals
• Contributing to the overall success of the branch

Returning the focus back on consumers can increase the likelihood of increasing customer retention, especially by meeting the following consumer needs:

• Opening a new account and being able to start using it quickly
• Interacting with the channel of their choosing
• Having confidence in their choice of FI
• Accessing guidance when questions arise
• Enjoying the simplicity and transparency of options that are easy to say yes to and fulfill

But both consumers and financial institutions inevitably encounter challenges on the road to meeting these objectives. So, what are the digital solutions that can increase consumer satisfaction and help get FIs on the road to PFI status?

Between limited onboarding time, navigating complex systems, lack of identity verification tools, limited insight into the customer journey, and being too occupied with data entry to properly interact with current and prospective customers, bankers have many hurdles to clear.

And on the flip side, customers often find themselves playing phone tag in order to complete an identity verification, being confronted with irrelevant and non-contextual offers, and having to complete multiple and often redundant steps throughout any application process.

Let’s take a look at a typical situation:

Scenario: A customer who is currently with a local credit union is moving to another state and would like to switch to a bank with a national branch presence.

Challenge: Identity and verification (IDV) checks (false positives, siloed data, manual processes)

Solution: A guided and intuitive experience for consumers and bankers. Applications can be completed within a single session, and bankers have access to workflows with end-to-end fulfillment across all touchpoints.

The most common consumer and lender challenges can be solved by technology, underscoring the importance of reframing financial experiences within a digital context in order to win the relationship primacy battle.

The bottom line is that both consumers and financial services teams are often hamstrung by inefficient and outdated technology. But this is where companies like Blend offer omnichannel solutions made simple by innovation.

The banking landscape has been evolving for quite some time, and it’s only going to keep shifting. Banks that can develop a core IT strategy have an opportunity to eliminate innovation constraints. Blend’s Consumer Banking Suite and deposit accounts solution ease both lender and borrower pain points and help FIs gain PFI status faster — regardless of which side of the generational divide consumers are on.