Executive Summary

Bank account opening is bouncing back after a slump during the coronavirus pandemic, and digital account opening (DAO) activity in particular is poised to benefit from the surge. But as banks work to optimize their DAO processes, they will face stiff competition from neobanks and Big Tech companies; both are raising the bar for DAO and count millions of customers among their existing client bases.

3 KEY QUESTIONS THIS REPORT WILL ANSWER:

1. What is the state of digital account opening today, and how is DAO expected to grow through 2024?
2. How are neobanks and digital challengers realigning consumer expectations for the DAO process?
3. What are the next frontiers in the race to perfect the DAO customer experience?

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? We examine the status of digital account opening—focusing primarily on deposit accounts—and what the trajectory of DAO will look like over the next few years for incumbent banks and digital challengers. We address who the different players are in the DAO race, what the steps of the account opening process are, and in which ways digital challengers are refining them. Finally, we look at what’s around the corner for DAO based on perspectives offered to us by executives at banks and third-party DAO solution providers.

KEY STAT: Digital account opening fell drastically in 2020 due to the pandemic, but it’s set to come roaring back this year before returning to more incremental growth in 2022 and beyond. Financial institutions now face a challenge to offer DAO processes that can convert this elevated volume into successful customer acquisition.