The days of in-person interactions with bank tellers may be becoming a thing of the past as customers overwhelmingly opt for digital experiences.
Bank of America announced on Thursday (Aug. 5) that digital deposits now account for 85 percent of transactions. These transactions are fueled by almost 48 million checks deposited in the second quarter, the bank said in a press release.
Since the beginning of July, the bank said more than 70 percent of its customers were actively using digital tools for at least one of their needs, including 72 percent of consumer and small business clients, 80 percent of wealth management customers throughout Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank and 75 percent of global banking customers.
The growth in digital banking is a trend likely to continue. As PYMNTS reported last month, the bank’s active mobile banking customers grew to 31.8 million, up from 31.5 million in the first quarter of 2021, an increase from the 30.3 million customers the year prior. Total digital users in the second quarter were 40.5 million, up from 39 million in 2020. A whopping 79 percent of households use digital across the banking platform, up from 77 percent in the second quarter of 2020.
Read more: Bank Of America: Active Digital Banking Users Up 3 Pct To 40.5M
In addition, more than 4.4 million customers have engaged with Life Plan, an app that helps customers track their short- and long-term financial goals and request financial planning advice, according to the company’s website. The digital tool is especially popular among millennials, which account for 43 percent of its use.
Bank of America’s artificial intelligence-driven virtual financial assistant, Erica, has been increasingly in popular since its release three years ago. More than 21 million customers have used the virtual assistant to complete more than 430 million interactions. In the first half of 2021, customers leaned on Erica for completion of 200 million interactions.
Customers are also overwhelmingly choosing digital channels for scheduling appointments, with 871,000 arranging to speak with financial specialists during the second quarter. During the second quarter, wealth management customers opted more readily to communicate with advisors via text message or virtual meetings.
