Banks to move beyond AI pilots by 2026, research reveals

By Puja Sharma

Top banking executives and industry analysts forecast how AI, payments innovation, and platform transformation will reshape the industry in 2026

Backbase, the AI-powered banking technology, released the 2026 Banking Predictions Report, a comprehensive analysis featuring insights from more than 20 industry leaders on the forces set to define banking’s next chapter. The report reveals how artificial intelligence, unified platforms, and invisible payments will shift from pilot projects to production-scale transformation across retail, commercial, wealth, and private banking.

Overall: A big year for AI in banking

The report’s central finding: 2026 will mark the year AI moves decisively from experimentation to enterprise-wide impact. While 92% of global banks have deployed AI in at least one core function, only one in four is using it strategically across the organisation. That gap is closing fast, as banks embed agentic assistants, workflow automation, and AI-driven compliance to deliver measurable returns in customer servicing, fraud prevention, and software delivery.

Segment transformation: from retail to commercial

The report also examines five segment-specific shifts:

• Retail banking will become proactively personal and invisible, with AI co-pilots automating savings, bill payments, and financial wellness.
• Private banking will be defined by augmented relationships, where AI copilots enable relationship managers to raise the minimum baseline of service for every client.
• Wealth management will fuse hyper-automation with human advice, scaling white-glove experiences through AI-driven prep, analysis, and next-best actions.
• Small business banking will be redefined by speed, precision, and ecosystems-based intelligence, with agentic collaboration, instant KYC, and dynamic credit.
• Commercial banking will become predictive, modular, and growth-driven, with API-led treasury, agentic operations, and ESG-linked offerings running on composable architecture.

It’s time to build the foundation for intelligent growth

“AI waits for no bank,” said Jouk Pleiter, CEO and Founder of Backbase. “Banks don’t need more pilots – they need outcomes. With our AI-powered Banking Platform, we’re going all-in on the AI opportunity and empowering banks to boost productivity, automate intelligently, and unlock unprecedented growth faster than ever.”

Adrian McPhee, Chief Technology Officer at Backbase, added: “Something can be both hyped and genuinely transformational – they’re not mutually exclusive. The difference between noise and impact will come down to mindset. The real winners in 2026 will view AI not as a toolbox, but as a catalyst for transformation anchored in governed data, redesigned processes, and disciplined, risk-managed deployment at scale.

Key predictions for 2026

The report outlines five horizontal trends reshaping banking across all segments:

1. The AI-powered bank: Institutions that embed agentic assistants, workflow automation, and AI-driven compliance will convert hype into measurable ROI, including faster servicing, more efficient operations, and a dramatically accelerated software development lifecycle.
2. The new frontier in banking fraud: Trust will emerge as the defining competitive advantage. By unifying detection, decisioning, and case management – and layering continuous verification and content-authenticity checks – banks will cut losses, boost confidence, and turn safety into a growth advantage.
3. The invisible payments economy: Payments will become fully embedded, invisible, and intelligent. Orchestration across cards, accounts, wallets, and digital currencies – plus instant settlement and programmable rails – will create new revenue at the moment of payment.
4. The open finance acceleration: Open banking will evolve into open finance, creating a revenue engine for banks. Those that productise APIs, monetise data, and embed services in partner ecosystems will shift from compliance costs to ecosystem-led growth.
5. The race for relevance: Incumbents will face their toughest competitive test yet. Banks that unify their data and channels into a single, AI-powered platform will match digital natives on speed and surpass them on trust, governance, and accountable personalisation.