There is a strong appetite among younger consumers for banking services from technology firms such as Amazon, Facebook, Google or Apple, as they could offer greater convenience and more personalised services.

This is according to a new report from MuleSoft, which surveyed more than 8,000 consumers across the UK, US, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and Singapore. It found that one in three global consumers would consider using the likes of Amazon for banking services; a figure which rises to 52 per cent for those aged 18-34.

Those in Singapore (47 per cent) and the United States (43 per cent) were the most open to using these companies as a banking provider, while consumers in the Netherlands were the least open (22 per cent).

In addition, the study found that six in 10 consumers under the age of 34 would be happy for banks to share their transaction data with trusted third parties if it meant they received a more personalised experience. Some 55 per cent of respondents felt that their banks do not currently provide a connected experience, with 51 per cent considering a change in banking provider as a result.

Inefficiency was cited as a main cause of frustration for consumers, who believe that banks could do more to improve their existing processes. For example, 57 per cent believe that opening a bank account should take no longer than an hour, while 47 per cent believe applying for a mortgage should take less than a day.

“Delivering a connected experience remains a challenge for many banks. As the research shows, those banks that fail to deliver a connected experience risk damaging customer loyalty at a time when it is easier than ever before for consumers to change banking provider,” said Danny Healy, client architect at MuleSoft.

“Today consumers can open bank accounts in a matter of minutes and have mortgage applications processed in hours. The traditional players can no longer afford to stand still and must ensure they can speed up their processes. Banks need to be able to unlock customer data from siloed systems and integrate their existing legacy systems with new digital technologies and channels,” he concluded.

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