After surveying 1,000 Canadians and going through its own traffic data and Google search volumes data, Toronto-based RateHub has released its second Digital Money Trends Report, which examines how different generations use FinTech in their lives and the impact of FinTech across personal finance sectors.
When it came to ranking level of trust, online banking led among all respondents at 87 percent, and the report said that this is likely due to the fact that this service has been around for “decades”. However, newer services like robo-advisors and marketplace lenders struggled to get the same recognition, with trust levels at 11 percent and eight percent respectively.
“Canadians are searching for information on financial products online, but there is not a high level of trust in FinTech companies yet,” said Kerri-Lynn McAllister, chief marketing officer at RateHub.ca. “Compared to counterparts in the US, FinTechs in Canada are in a much newer market with fewer players and less awareness, which is reflected in the report’s findings on trust. The US financial services sector is also very fragmented, while we have long-engrained loyalty to our Big Five banks. It will be interesting to see how things play out in the coming years.”
When it came to online banking via mobile, there was a clear generational gap — 70 percent of millennials (18 to 34) say they access online banking through a mobile device, while 51 percent of Gen Xers (35 to 54) and 22 percent of baby boomers (55+) said the same.
Younger respondents also prefer to apply for new products online, while boomers are the only generation more likely to visit a bank branch to apply for a credit card.
The report also examined loyalty to financial institutions; boomers are most likely to hold a mortgage with their primary financial institution (69 percent), while only half of generation Xers and millennials do. However, millennials are the most loyal generation when it comes to their credit cards, with 69 percent holding a card with their primary bank, compared to 59 percent of Generation Xers, and 66 percent of boomers.
Check out the full report here.