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As discussed in a recent blog post, banks and credit unions of all sizes continue to navigate a bizarre disconnect. Awash in a steady stream of deposit inflows from both businesses and consumers, institutions are hard-pressed to generate sufficient loan demand to put these funds to profitable use.

A crucial part of the challenge stems from account acquisition capabilities not keeping pace with customers’ digital evolution. This trend was already well underway but accelerated during the pandemic. SRM’s recent white paper, How Financial Institutions Can Boost Account Growth to Move with Changing Margins, outlines an actionable methodology for leveraging data analysis and market expertise to identify and act on a consistent stream of opportunities.

Here’s a preview of some of the insights covered in the white paper.

In response to the banking industry’s recent influx of deposits, several recent bank acquisitions show how some banks are responding to the pressure of putting liquidity to work.

Midsize banks like Truist Financial, Fifth Third Bancorp, Regions Financial, and some community banks have announced acquisitions where they plan to hold onto loans that the sellers would typically roll off the balance sheet.

Their objective? To redeploy billions of dollars in deposits held by the acquirers, shore up net interest margins, and boost returns.

Rumor is that a further tightening of the Durbin Amendment is on the near-term horizon for card issuers. The most concrete evidence is the Fed’s May request-for-comment on regulations for debit routing of online transactions.

The Fed wants to clarify the regulatory requirement that at least two unaffiliated payment card networks must be enabled for all debit card transactions, including card-not-present (CNP), and card-issuing banks and credit unions will be held responsible. Some terminology will also see standardization.

While the Fed positioned its query as a “non-substantive clarification,” many of the 453 comments submitted so far express a belief that the proposal, if enacted, would have a significant impact on issuers. Meanwhile, bankers are entering a period of uncertainty as they closely monitor the situation for implications to P&L.

If there were any lingering doubts about the potential impact of the buy now, pay later (BNPL) installment credit model on card economics, Square’s recently announced $29 billion acquisition of Afterpay likely put them to rest. Nonetheless, we see Apple’s plan to enter the fray with a feature built into Apple Pay as the more significant near-term concern.

Though much is still unknown, the unofficially dubbed “Apple Pay Later” could potentially be more threatening to card issuers than existing BNPL products. It could also further complicate the Apple - bank/credit union/debit issuers relationship, which could already be described as “frenemies” at best.

It’s an inconvenient truth - the timing of customers’ financial needs don’t always align with balance sheet strategy or marketing campaigns. Due to the pandemic, banks and credit unions were flooded with an unprecedented level of deposits but faced muted demand for the loans that put these funds to work.

Although no one has a silver bullet to synchronize customer needs with portfolio strategy, there may be an equation. SRM’s latest white paper, How Financial Institutions Can Boost Account Growth to Move with Changing Margins, offers a disciplined approach to being present when customers are “in-market” as well as a “growth equation” to boost account growth performance.

In recent years, challenger banks, neobanks, and other fintech startups have intensified their efforts to compete as financial services providers. Now, regulators have renewed interest in shifting the odds in their favor.

By obtaining a new specialized charter through the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), new competitors may gain strategic advantages over more conventional banks and credit unions.

Here is a closer look at some legal and regulatory developments which could determine just how entrenched fintechs will become in the payments system – and how competitive they can be with core banking products and services.

SRM recently released its list of 2021 midyear trends that banks and credit unions should monitor during the second half of this year. Naturally, these developments didn’t appear out of thin air – our top-performing project managers and experts make it their business to examine and spotlight those topics which carry the greatest strategic impact for payments and financial services.

In this post, SRM shines a light on some big acts we’ve long anticipated will draw attention by the millions, billions, and trillions.

Bitcoin has lost half of its value since reaching an all-time high mid-April. Although one might think this setback would cast a pall over a gathering of cryptocurrency enthusiasts, the overall tone of Coindesk’s Consensus conference in late May remained constructive and upbeat.

For those keeping their eyes on the prize, these two paths are not contradictory. Crypto’s long term value proposition hinges on its adoption as a means of exchange, not its volatile pricing as a speculative asset class. And there’s no sign of slowing down among large financial institutions and scrappy entrepreneurs creating trading and custody platforms and expanding payment capabilities for digital coins. These are the areas where banks and credit unions of all sizes need to take note.

Financial Institutions (FIs) have long had a curiosity regarding fintech.

There were concerns that these digital disruptors would create more competition for traditional financial services providers (without as much regulatory oversight), but banks and startups are starting to embrace opportunities to collaborate.

Conversations about partnerships between FIs and fintech intensified in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, as scores of consumers and businesses became digital converts and there was a greater need to make day-to-day tasks easier (and safer) for those customers.

In 2020, SRM conducted three surveys to shed light on the financial services industry’s approach to navigating the pandemic. Our March and June surveys focused on bank and credit union executives’ responses to COVID-19 and their strategies for delivering uninterrupted service to customers.

Six months into the pandemic, we further rounded out the picture by commissioning leading research firm Harris Insights and Analytics to collect data directly from US consumers. This survey assessed how their banking habits had evolved since global lockdowns began, and how they might continue to change in the future. The results were further analyzed by SRM’s Europe-based Data Analytics team, which specializes in consumer behavior and loyalty insights.

The findings revealed some important differences by segment with key insights for go-forward digital banking strategies.