Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is expected to be transforming the banking sector in 2026, according to a study by Juniper Research.
In the recently released Top 10 Fintech & Payments Trends 2026, the global tech strategist enumerated what to look out for in the field, reshaping financial services in the coming 12 months.
Juniper Research is predicting that the next wave of disruption is AI-powered banking, with GenAI set to transform banking, in particular, in 2026.
The study suggests that banking is poised to reap the benefits of AI as its technical infrastructure moves forward. In 2026, GenAI is expected to have a transformative impact on the way in which banks operate.
Acccording to Juniper Resaerch, GenAI has a number of different capabilities that will heavily impact the way banks operate, most notably in two particular segments:
• Customer Service: GenAI enables hyper-personalised customer engagement; delivering tailored financial advice, proactive nudges, and real-time responses based on customer data and activity.
• Compliance & Fraud Detection: GenAI streamlines regulatory compliance by automating the processing of large volumes of regulatory documents, summarising updates, and aligning with internal policies. This helps reduce manual errors and the number of false positives; accelerating compliance tasks such as KYC and AML checks, and ensuring banks can stay ahead of evolving regulations.
Apart from GenAI in banking, the other trends to look out for according to the research are:
- Stablecoins to Rival Existing Interbank Settlement Layer
- Agentic Commerce to Reshape B2B & Consumer Purchasing
- EUDI Wallet to Redefine Digital Identity in Europe
- Tokenised Assets Will Enter the Mainstream
- Flexible Credentials Will Drive Payment Card Renaissance
- AI Fraud Prevention Investment to Rise Amid Deepfake Threats
- Pay by Bank to Scale in the UK Via Commercial VRPs
- No-code AML Adoption to Extend Beyond Banks
- Virtual Cards Will Take Off Within Travel Payments
