Generation Z Wants It All and Wants It Now. But They Also Need Help
By Beth Merle, Vice President Enterprise Client Solutions, Data Axle
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Executive Summary
- Winning the trust of Gen Z will require a thorough overhaul of banking convention and standard practices.
- Gen Z is technologically sophisticated and highly demanding in their expectations of responsiveness and relevancy.
- But at the same time, they also exhibit surprisingly low levels of financial literacy. Institutions that provide education, guidance and support in the right moment and the right channel will win their trust.
Gen Z is rapidly emerging as an economic powerhouse. With a current global spending power of $450 billion, this figure is projected to skyrocket to over $12 trillion by 2030, with income projections reaching an astounding $36 trillion within the next five years. Winning this financially ascendant generation demands a complete reimagination of engagement strategies.
As Gen Z progresses into their 20s and 30s and begins to gain financial independence, it’s critical to connect with them through impactful, relevant, and personalized interactions. This segment is digitally instinctive, expecting financial institutions to meet them precisely where they are: on mobile, across social platforms, and in moments that feel genuinely authentic and personalized.
From Branch to App
Mobile-first banking must evolve to include social-first strategies and short-form, snackable financial education content. G+D Netcetera reports that 99% of Gen Z have used a mobile banking app in the past month with half of them managing finances exclusively on their smartphone.
This generation’s earliest financial experiences were shaped by instant gratification from peer-to-peer payment platforms like Venmo, Zelle, Apple Pay, and Google Pay, setting a firm expectation for real-time transactions. Consequently, Gen Z often struggles to grasp or accept concepts like “financial float,” and often has a low tolerance for delayed funds availability or notification lags. Their expectation is clear: real-time, accurate information on their finances and immediate funds availability are the new standards.
Having known only instantaneous and seamless digital transactions throughout their lives, Gen Z is more apt to share their data on social media, openly communicating their preferences. Their mobile device serves as their primary connection to the world, shaping their demand for richly featured, personalized experiences tailored precisely to their individual needs. These critical expectations must be at the forefront when building trust with your brand.
Trust Reimagined
For Gen Z, trust isn’t built on decades-old reputations; it’s actively earned through transparency, purpose-driven action, and personalized support. Despite their unparalleled digital sophistication, this generation paradoxically faces the lowest levels of financial literacy. A TIAA Financial Literacy study revealed Gen Z averaged just 38% correct answers on the P-Fin Index, accurately responding to a mere seven out of 28 questions. The oldest members of this group are already grappling with significant financial challenges, including student debt and economic uncertainty. This makes digital-first, interactive financial education a strategy likely to resonate deeply.
Building this trust begins with clear transparency of fee structures and policies. Gen Z exhibits a strong desire for financial knowledge, preferring that financial services seamlessly blend into their daily digital lives through embedded finance. This could manifest as banking within gaming environments, budgeting through lifestyle apps, or even proactive savings suggestions from a bank when surplus funds are detected. While inherently digital-first, Gen Z also expects access to a live person for advice via chat, phone, or even in-person — especially when concerns or problems arise. Therefore, robust financial education must be a core component of any banking strategy targeting Gen Z.
Dig deeper:
- How Citizens Bank Beats the Giants with Style, Smarts and Soul
- Close the Gen Z ‘Relevancy Gap’ Now or Watch Them Leave
The Loyalty Shift
Gen Z’s life experiences are digital-first, shaped by platforms like Instagram, Amazon, and Netflix. They’ve grown accustomed to highly personalized offerings that leverage their individual behavior to deliver tailored recommendations. This digital foundation has set a completely new standard for earning their trust and, ultimately, their loyalty.
To truly connect with this generation, banks must create self-service connections that are seamless, educational, and even fun. Key features like easy money movement and in-app financial health recommendations aren’t just perks, they’re imperative, and include:
- Immediacy of P2P payments and requests for payment
- Real-time funds transfers between accounts and across institutions
- Guidance for budgeting and savings based on real activity guided by AI
- Ability to monitor credit
- Being able to connect with someone live for problem resolution
The Influencer Opportunity
Forward-looking financial institutions are leveraging local influencers and creators to demystify banking, boost app adoption, and promote financial literacy among younger audiences
Influencer marketing has seen explosive growth, surging from $9.7 billion USD in 2020 to an estimated $32.5 billion in 2025, according to Statista. This growth is fueled by a pervasive consumer trend: 81% of individuals trust influencer recommendations over traditional brand ads. This trust isn’t limited to younger demographics; consumers across the board increasingly rely on social influencers, friends, and family for product and service considerations.
For financial services and banking, this dynamic is particularly relevant, as personal finance decisions are often deeply emotional, highly personal, and compounded by feelings of intimidation due to a perceived lack of expertise. NerdWallet’s 2024 Financial Angst Report reveals that 79% of U.S. adults and 92% of Gen Z say they find at least one financial topic intimidating, demonstrating a distinct need to educate and reach younger generations in new ways to make banking less daunting.
Influencer marketing makes financial services organizations more human in their interactions with consumers. A recent article from Random contends that influencer marketing can break down the complex subjects of banking by collaborating with the right influencers to bring credibility, transparency, and personality to their messaging. In 2020, this approach was effectively demonstrated by Starling, a UK-based online banking company. Partnering with Goat Agency, they launched a year-long online campaign to boost their reach and engage a wider breadth of demographics, particularly Gen Z.
The strategy focused on a multi-channel ambassador program, integrating influencers across platforms like YouTube and Instagram to share personal experiences with Starling’s features and drive social conversation. This continuous engagement, particularly around key calendar moments and money management during the pandemic, generated over 23 million impressions, more than 12.5 million engagements, and an average engagement rate of 8%. Ultimately, it sparked positive conversations and led to an increase in new account holder relationships, authenticating the effectiveness of this type of marketing strategy.
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Data-driven Personalization
For Gen Z, digital and physical worlds are intrinsically linked, shaping their expectation for seamless, personalized digital experiences. Their comfort online makes them highly receptive to sharing information, often providing valuable zero-party data. Financial institutions gain an advantage by enriching this self-provided data with other insights. This includes appending digital identifiers like Mobile Advertising IDs (MAIDs) and social media handles, alongside demographic and behavioral third-party data. This comprehensive data enrichment allows for communication strategies aligned with Gen Z’s unique expectations.
A recent survey commissioned by Data Axle confirmed Gen Z’s strong preference for personalization. Of respondents, 42% ranked personalized recommendations as very important. Their low tolerance for generic interactions is evident, with nearly half of Gen Z switching providers due to a lack of personalization or poor digital experience. This generation’s digital fluency means they are highly influenced by online sources; 66% use social media platforms for discovery and research, and 35% heavily rely on influencers for ideas and recommendations. These preferences demonstrate the critical need for financial institutions to leverage data enrichment to create the hyper-personalized, digitally-driven experiences Gen Z expects.
Looking Forward
In a nutshell, captivating Gen Z’s loyalty means redefining banking as an intuitive, transparent, and personalized digital journey. Financial institutions prioritizing mobile-first strategies, financial literacy through engaging content, cultivate trust via authentic interactions, and leverage data-driven personalization will be well-positioned to thrive in the evolving financial landscape shaped by this powerful generation.
