US consumers must trust their financial institution before they’ll share their bank credentials

The data: More than a quarter of US consumers surveyed said that when it comes to being comfortable with sharing their bank credentials with third parties, trust in their financial institution to protect their financial assets is the most important factor, according to a PYMNTS.com survey conducted in collaboration with MX.

Although trust in their financial institution was the top determinant among US consumers, respondents also pointed to several other key factors:

• 16.0% said that trust in the third party they were connecting to was the most important.
• 14.4% picked the belief that the connections are secure as their top choice.
• 11.6% noted that transactions becoming much easier because the accounts are connected as their top factor.

More on this: No matter what increases their comfort in doing so, US consumers are showing interest in utilizing open-banking technology.

Among survey respondents that have connected third-party apps to their bank accounts, 29.9% were very or extremely interested, and 25.7% were somewhat interested in using an open-banking portal offered by their personal bank. The level of interest grew within certain groups—particularly younger generations or those already comfortable with sharing credentials.

• 47.1% and 37.2% of Millennials and Gen Z, respectively, were very or extremely interested.
• 59.8% of consumers that were very or extremely comfortable sharing credentials showed the same high level of interest for open banking as younger generations.

The big takeaway: Financial institutions can leverage an enviable level of trust to shape their customers' feelings and behaviors around using open banking.

A June 2021 survey from Klarna and Nepa found that 52% of US adults trusted banks, while just 17% trusted neobanks. The fragmentation of open banking in the US has led to slow adoption of the technology by consumers—55% of US adults have never even heard of the service.

Open-banking providers would be smart to stay in banks’ good graces. Incumbents could heavily influence consumers’ comfort in sharing their credentials with third parties.