For millions of North Americans, banking is often done on a digital device: You tap your phone, open your bank app, check your balance, make some transactions, and then repeat. But for all the convenience of digital finance, it sometimes feels like chatting with an entity that doesn’t understand you.
While a June 2025 report from Chase revealed 78% of U.S. consumers now use mobile banking apps weekly, those same users are more anxious about their finances than ever. In a separate survey by Bankrate, 43% of U.S. adults say money worries negatively affect their mental health. In Canada, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada found nearly half of adults say they’ve lost sleep over finances, and one in three runs out of money before the end of the month.
These stats are a wake-up call about the frustration and distrust that follow when banks treat customers like account numbers. Beyond profits, banks must start “banking with heart,” according to Laura McCutchan, Director of Design of mobileLIVE. “Banking apps should be designed as if people have hearts, not just accounts,” McCutchan said.
Why UX Should Feel Human
Many digital channels excel at being fast. While that kind of functionality is great, it’s not what turns users into loyal customers. When it comes to user experience (UX), customers want more than just frictionless transfers; they crave reassurance that someone, or something, has their back.
As one report by Deloitte and Accenture revealed, trust and empathy drive loyalty much more than the number of features. Another survey from NetGuru found a whopping 84% of people would consider switching banks to get tools that genuinely improve their financial health, with 74% noting they’d be more loyal to an institution that offered personalized spending tips tailored to their habits.
“People don’t just want banks that move money fast — they want banks that move with their emotions. Trust is built when an app feels more like a friend than a calculator,” noted McCutchan.
In other words, people want banks that listen, not just calculate numbers. And that realization, according to Ali, is reshaping how banks approach their UX.
Putting Heart in the App: Bank Case Studies
Some banks are starting to take that challenge seriously, turning empathy into features. The Royal Bank of Canada’s NOMI assistant, short for “Know Me,” is one of the earliest examples of emotional intelligence built into a financial app. NOMI uses real-time data to surface spending patterns (“You spent $50 on coffee this week”), suggest savings opportunities, and offer helpful budgeting nudges, all wrapped in conversational, human-friendly language.
TD Bank has taken it a step further by embedding empathy into its design process. Its Human-Centered Design team is deliberately multidisciplinary, composed of anthropologists, psychologists, designers, and technologists. They begin every project with fieldwork, not surveys or dashboards, but real conversations with real customers about their lived financial realities.
In the U.S., Chase is adapting to a younger user base that expects personalization by default. In a recent 2025 consumer trends report, 67% of respondents aged 18–34 said they regularly use peer-to-peer payments, up from 40% in 2020, and 39% said they want AI tools to help manage their money.
These case studies are reflections of a shift in mindset, one where banks act less like spreadsheets and more like support systems.
“In the old days, a branch manager might notice if you looked worried when you came in,” said McCutchan. “Today, the app needs to sense that same anxiety and respond. If someone’s checking their balance late at night over and over, maybe the app offers a budgeting tip. Or even just a message: ‘We’ve got your back.’ That’s what human banking looks like — even in code.”
Empathy at Scale, and Why It Pays
Embedding empathy in design is no longer a luxury. It’s a long-term differentiator. A 2024 McKinsey study found that banks that successfully build emotional connection with their customers see a 27% higher customer lifetime value than their peers. In other words, empathy is good business.
But building for emotional intelligence isn’t about one-off moments. It requires reframing the way banks measure success. Not just “How fast was that transfer?” or “How many logins last week?” but also: “Did this screen make someone feel less anxious?” and “Does this feature help them sleep better at night?”
It also means rewriting small but meaningful moments. Consider fee alerts: a cold “You’ve been charged $25” isn’t just annoying — it erodes trust. A more thoughtful message might say, “We noticed an overdraft today. Here’s what happened, and how to avoid it next time.” The difference is not technical. It’s emotional.
There’s also growing potential for AI to meet users in moments that matter. Newer systems are learning to identify behavioral cues, like frequent late-night balance checks, and respond proactively. That could mean a low-balance alert, a suggestion to set financial goals, or even a connection to a human coach.
“The future of banking isn’t just digital,” McCutchan said. “It’s deeply personal. The magic happens when apps stop reacting to taps — and start responding to feelings.”
At the end of the day, empathy at scale is really about trust at scale. When people feel understood, they don’t just stick around — they tell everyone else about you. In a world where trust is more fragile than ever, building with heart might just be the best ROI any bank can hope for.
