The 2027 Priorities for Banking

Megan talks with banks and credit unions every day, and the theme she hears most as they plan for 2027 is deposit growth. With everyone fighting for the same deposits, she argues that acquisition, retention and relationship deepening have to work as one strategy. Too many institutions still stop after the first few onboarding messages instead of using their data to decide what comes next. In her view, the work can’t stop once the account is open, because relationship growth is a continuum.

Data is the biggest barrier Megan sees. Institutions sit on more customer data than they know how to use, even though a bank or credit union can see a customer’s full financial picture while other providers see only a slice. Her standard is that data only has to be directional, and she shares how Fiserv itself relies on partners like Snowflake to connect its own data. She also explains why disciplined growth beats retreating, and where AI is actually working: fraud prevention and marketing personalization.

Megan’s daughter turned 16 and opened her first account at a bank that doesn’t allow Zelle under 18. Her babysitting money moved to Venmo, which had a debit card in her hands within 2 days, and she now treats it like a checking account. Megan’s point is that the competitor to worry about is whoever owns the customer’s daily financial activity. Her advice for every CEO finishing a 2027 plan is to start with the customer and answer one question first: why would someone bank with us?

About the guest: Megan Pannier is Head of Bank and Adoption Marketing at Fiserv, where she works with banks and credit unions on growth, onboarding and customer engagement. She and Jim Marous first worked together at Zions Bank.

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