eMarketer: In 2017 Nearly 60% of the US Population Will Use Digital Banking

In 2017, nearly 60% of the US population will be digital banking users, according to eMarketer’s new forecast. Some 150.7 million adults will access their bank, credit card, or brokerage accounts at least once a month via digital channels.

Not surprisingly, older users are less likely to be digital bankers. Among those ages 55 to 64, eMarketer estimates that 52.4% will use digital banking next year. For those over 65, the percentage falls sharply: Barely one in three will do banking online next year. Those trends are even more evident when looking at mobile banking behaviors. A mere 7.5% of the over-65 population will be mobile bankers in 2017.

“Older users are still somewhat less likely to have a smartphone, and they also don’t feel as comfortable with the devices yet, especially when it comes to applications like banking where they want a high degree of security,“ said eMarketer analyst Nicole Perrin. “Older banking customers are also more likely to have more complex needs, they use a wider variety of banking products and tend to prefer to deal with their accounts on desktop computers.“

By contrast, those between 18 and 44 have adopted digital banking in higher numbers, especially when it comes to mobile banking. Millennials in particular are the heaviest mobile phone banking users.

“For now, mobile banking isn’t driving increases in digital banking, and growth is tepid among younger internet users, most of whom already conduct their banking via digital channels,“ said Perrin. "In the long term, mobile and digital banking are likely to become more synonymous.