Three trends that will shape digital banking
The digital banking landscape is transitioning towards an integrated omnichannel experience that blends digital convenience with in-person advisory services, as highlighted in recent commentary from Nordea. Customers increasingly favor a seamless experience when dealing with complex financial decisions, such as mortgages, which require human insight. According to Nordea, banks must evolve to accommodate this demand or risk losing relevance in a rapidly digitizing market. Per the full note , this shift could redefine customer engagement in financial services as digital platforms become more sophisticated.
What the desk is arguing
The core argument is that the future of digital banking lies in creating a convergence of online and physical banking experiences. As noted by Anders Nicander at Nordea, the challenge will involve integrating real-time human advice into the digital onboarding processes that customers currently favor for their ease of use.
The supporting evidence indicates that while digital transactions have surged, crucial customer interactions still necessitate personal engagement — particularly during pivotal life moments. This trend underscores an underlying desire for a hybrid model, where digital efficiency meets the necessity for personalized support, enhancing the overall banking experience.
Where it sits in our coverage
Our consensus target for the EUR/USD sits at 1.075, with a range between 1.04 and 1.12. Key targets include:
The desk's view aligns closely with jpmorgan, reflecting a more optimistic outlook compared to bofa. Given that our target stabilizes towards the higher end of the range, it signifies confidence in the ongoing adaptation of financial services.
How other firms see it
Most firms aligned with this view are focusing on enhancing digital interfaces, with some acknowledging the essential nature of human advisors in pivotal banking moments. In contrast, firms like bofa take a more cautious stance, suggesting that the economic environment may not favor extensive investments in digital integration.
Expect to watch the EUR/USD trajectory closely as central banks navigate their own digital transformations. The interplay between digital banking innovations and monetary policy decisions will be pivotal over the coming months.
How firms align with this view
Aligned with the desk view
Contrary positioning
Key takeaways
- 01The future of banking prioritizes omnichannel experiences that integrate digital and personal services.
- 02Customer preferences indicate a strong desire for seamless transitions between online banking and in-person advice.
- 03Nordea emphasizes the importance of human interaction for complex financial decisions.
- 04Competitive positioning in digital banking will increasingly define market relevance.
Market implications
Traders should monitor the EUR/USD pair closely as potential shifts in market sentiments around digital banking could influence associated currency valuations. Look for movements around the 1.075 mark as a critical threshold for broader market trends.
Risks to this view
A significant revision in customer sentiment towards traditional banking methods or a shift in regulatory frameworks around digital banking could prompt a reevaluation of the proposed digital integration strategy. Additionally, any economic downturn that affects consumer confidence may hinder banks' ability to implement these hybrid solutions effectively.
Digital banking Three trends that will shape digital banking 08-12-2022 Where is digital banking heading in the future and what do bank customers want? Customers have embraced the digital banking of today with its fast and convenient experience. In the future, the challenge will be to fuse in-person advisory services and digital channels into one seamless experience according to Anders Nicander, head of Nordea One Digital.
Chances are that you use your mobile banking app and other mobile financial services a lot, but primarily for transactions and everyday needs. Paying for coffee, transferring money between accounts, paying bills, maybe even applying for an overdraft or signing papers – entirely without papers . It’s all great, fast and very, very convenient.
What is Digital Banking? Learn the basics in two minutes Digital banking has come a long way, so what’s in store for the future? Anders Nicander, Head of Nordea One Digital , identifies three trends which will impact digital banking in Nordea in the future: 1.
Omni-channel banking: Seamless integration between the real and the digital world Even though bank customers have adopted all kinds of online transactions, when it comes to life defining moments, most of us still prefer to talk to an adviser, a real person, who can guide and support us. “What we want is to fuse the best of two worlds, the digital world and the real world, into one truly seamless experience for you as a customer,” Anders Nicander says. He gives an example: “Imagine that you’re in the process of becoming a customer, everything runs smoothly and online, and it’s easy and convenient. And during that process you discover that it’s relevant for you to talk to an adviser and get some advice on a mortgage loan.
Here, we would like you to be able to connect to an adviser who also has full insights into your digital onboarding application – right there and then, via your mobile or computer. So that the various digital and human channels are tied together and work seamlessly together,“ he says. “Another example could be receiving an actionable insight into our mobile banking app about the potential to save and invest using the options presented. Being interested, however still unsure, you can instantly chat with a person who is able to support you in making a decision without having to repeat yourself.” But the process can also go the other way.
An example: You have talked to your adviser about changing your mortgage loan and discussed different possibilities, and the adviser has told you what to look for. You now use the online loan calculator and end up “buying your loan” without the adviser, but based on the information the adviser gave you. Nicander adds: “Although having access to a real person is important in moments that matters, we know that customers are primarily looking for an efficient and engaging experience.
So it will still be really important and a high priority to enable customers to be digitally self-served and guided – but at the same time ensuring that in-person advice is consistent to digital advice and never more than a fingertip away.“ What we want is to fuse the best of two worlds, the digital world and the real world, into one truly seamless experience for you as a customer. Anders Nicander, Head of Nordea One Digital 2. Holistic personalised advice He also predicts a future where customers will get a more engaging and holistic digital banking experience, with personalised advice based on the customers unique financial situation – all of it.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be based on their engagement with Nordea only: ”If the customers want us to base our advice on a holistic view of their financial situation, we will be able to do that too, thanks to our partnership with Tink and the PSD2 EU directive which gives customers ownership of their data , so that it can travel from one loan provider or bank to another. After all, a lot of people use different banking services, and if we can combine data, we can also provide better and more useful advice,” says Nicander. “Imagine you have investments in one app, “normal” banking with Nordea and your pension in a third place. At the same time, you have two credit cards with different providers.
In order to give you the best advice, you can grant us access to see your financial information about investments, pension and credit cards, so we can advise you based on your whole financial situation in a way which is easy for you – without a thousand papers or excel sheets.” This way of helping customers is called Open Finance . It will be based on new technological development, partnerships such as Nordea’s partnership with Tink, the PSD2 legislation which has drastically changed the playing field for banks as well as upcoming legislation from the EU. Nordea has already come a long way in this field. 3.
Transparent sustainability down to a personal level Anders Nicander highlights sustainability as one of the areas where banks will be able to help customers gain transparency and insights about their own behaviour. “Today, we see how larger corporations make sustainability reports. In the future, ordinary people can use their bank to get their own personal sustainability report or maybe a personalised CO2-emissions report. In this way you as the customer can gain insights into your own consumer patterns from a sustainability point of view – insights, you can actually act on to take greener, smarter decisions.
Ranging from what to buy, what to invest in and even how to renovate your home to become more energy efficient. The data is there,” Anders Nicander says, and adds an important note: “Being a trusted financial partner is our highest priority and with that goes the utmost respect for privacy and consent. It’s the customer themselves that decide what insights they would like and to what extent – it’s a service we will provide on request.” 3 trends for digital banking in the future Seamless integration between the real world and the digital world Holistic, personalised experience Helping customers with sustainability insights and decisions Digital banking Tech & AI Insights Share on Facebook Share on Threads Share on Linkedin 20-11-2025 Open banking How APIs power the real-time payments revolution in banking The financial industry is right now in the middle of a paradigm shift as real-time payments become the norm rather than the exception.
At the heart of this transformation are banking APIs (application programming interfaces) that enable instant, secure and programmable money movement. Read more 25-09-2025 Digital banking How Nordea is transforming digital wealth experiences At this year’s Nordic Fintech Week, Johan Borg, Head of Digital Wealth, shared insights into how Nordea is transforming its digital wealth management offering to meet the evolving needs of Nordic investors. Read more 23-09-2025 Tech & AI Relationships before robots: How Nordea is leveraging AI in digital banking The Nordic Fintech Week has kicked off with strong Nordea participation.
We met with Malthe Falck, Head of Retail Digital, who gave a keynote on how Nordea is leveraging AI while staying true to its purpose of building trusted customer relationships. Read more Scroll to top
Sources & References
How we cover this story