PUBLISHED DATE: 2025-08-12 18:32:11
GLOBAL BANKING BENCHMARK STUDY 2024
Digital Transformation: What’s Next for Canadian Banks?
The Inside Story from 50 Senior Canadian Banking Leaders
To uncover the current state of digital transformation in Canadian banking, we surveyed 50 senior leaders from across the sector. We asked them about the progress of their digital transformations, the main challenges they face, and how they are prioritizing their transformation strategies.
Here’s what we found:
Key Stats at a Glance
- 74%: Nearly three-fourths admit that evolving customer expectations have exposed weaknesses in their organization’s current customer experience.
- 68%: Over two-thirds believe their firm’s legacy systems and infrastructure are preventing them from delivering the digital experiences their customers expect.
- 64%: Nearly two-thirds cite cybersecurity as their company’s number one priority over the next three years.
- 26%: Roughly one in four Canadian banks have a fully agile operating model.
Top Priorities for Digital Business Transformation in Canadian Banks:
- 18%: Improving cybersecurity
- 16%: Reducing costs through improved efficiency
- 16%: Enabling greater agility
- 14%: Growing revenue from existing products
- 10%: Growing revenue with new products and/or service offerings
- 10%: Improving the customer experience
- 10%: Challenging the threat posed by new market entrants (e.g., Google, Apple, Amazon)
- 6%: Acquiring new customers
Main Challenges Facing Canadian Banks:
- 48%: Legacy technology
- 40%: Regulatory challenges
- 38%: Lack of a unified strategy
Canadian Banks Are Focusing on Customer Centricity
Banks are striving to use data to create new products and services that deliver more personalized, omnichannel experiences.
- 56% said that combining customer data across systems to build a richer understanding of their customers and their relationships is their top customer experience transformation priority.
- 38% are prioritizing the introduction of new products and services as a key part of their customer experience (CX) strategy.
- 34% said that creating personalized journeys—such as tailored marketing or personalized savings tips based on individual spending habits—is a key strategy for improving customer experience.
Canadian Banks Want to Become More Agile
Banks are transforming to survive in the customer-centric digital era, but access to data, talent, and the right technology and platforms remains a challenge.
- 48% said that the ability to obtain a richer understanding of their customers via better use of data and analytics is their top priority for operational transformation.
- 46% said that investing in generative AI for internal use is their top priority for operational transformation.
- 40% said that investing in developing existing talent (e.g., upskilling, reskilling) is an operational priority, while only 22% are focusing on developing new talent (e.g., hiring digital skill sets).
How Do Canadian Banks Think They Stack Up?
- 49% think they’re ahead of their competitors when it comes to their ability to transform customer experiences.
- 83% believe they’re ahead in key development areas, such as innovation for products and services.
Other Key Metrics:
- 80%: Speed is a major focus area.
- 31%: Investment is a significant consideration.
- 74%: Digital natives are a key demographic for transformation efforts.
Internal Uses of Generative AI Are the Focus—for Now
More than half (56%) of banks are pursuing transactional generative AI use cases, including credit analysis, portfolio management, underwriting, risk measurement, legal contracts, proposals, RFPs, pitch documents, and more.
For more information, contact: david.donovan@publicissapient.com
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