Almost one-third of consumers who took part in a recent survey stated they would be willing to bank with Google, Amazon or Facebook, if any of those companies offered banking services. The survey was conducted by Accenture and found that 31-percent of those polled would be happy to bank with Google, Amazon or Facebook. A number which rises up to 41-percent when only 18 to 21-year-olds are accounted for. In addition to banking services, the same survey highlights that 29-percent would be happy to switch to Google, Amazon and Facebook for insurance services, while 38-percent would be willing to make use of financial advisory services, if offered.
In terms of the survey, the results form part of a much bigger look at the financial industry as a whole and whether consumers are happy to make greater use of various robo services, compared to human interaction-based ones. Of which, the results suggest that 7 out of 10 people would be happy to use robo-advisory services more often. The actual survey itself was conducted between May and June of 2016 and was based upon answers received by 32,715 respondents, from 18 different countries and regions – including the US. While further details on the breakdown of those respondents have not been provided in the press release, Accenture does note that “respondents covered multiple generations and income levels”.
With almost a third of those surveyed suggesting they would be happy to switch to Google, Amazon or Facebook for their financial and/or insurance services, it is likely to be welcomed news by those tech companies and especially if any of them do have grand ambitions of offering such services in the future. Which in some respects, is not too far-fetched considering a number of companies (including Google) have recently branched out into the mobile payments sphere. However, and on a cautionary note, it is worth pointing out that an identical number of respondents (31-percent) said they would be happy to switch to a supermarket or retailer for their banking needs, and 30-percent for their insurance needs. Which in reality, likely says much more about how those surveyed view traditional banking institutes in general and not necessarily, how willing they would be to work with possible new banking institutes, like Google, Amazon or Facebook.