While nearly half of all U.S. consumers believe nontraditional providers will drive innovation in the financial services industry, only 38 percent said they would consider a nontraditional provider for future financial services needs, according to a survey from Raddon Financial Group, a leading provider of financial industry research and trends data. However, likelihood to use a nontraditional provider such as PayPal, Amazon, Apple or Google broke down sharply along generational lines, with younger consumers much more likely to consider doing so.

“U.S. consumers continue to trust that banks and credit unions will provide them with the highest quality and most secure financial services available, and they believe that the emergence of nontraditional financial service providers has the potential to drive innovation in the industry,” said Bill Handel, vice president of research, Raddon Financial Group. “Innovation is essential if banks and credit unions want to remain at the center of consumer’s financial lives, as younger consumers have no qualms about going elsewhere if their demand for digital and mobile financial services are not being met.”

The Raddon Financial Group consumer survey was conducted in February 2015 and explores attitudes among four generations towards traditional and nontraditional providers.

Nontraditional Providers and the Delivery of Financial Services

While 49 percent of all consumers believe nontraditional providers will have an impact on how all providers deliver financial products and services, only 38 percent said they would consider using a nontraditional provider. When asked which nontraditional providers they are most likely to use, 26 percent said PayPal, 19 percent said Amazon, 16 percent said Apple and 16 percent said Google.

Generational Views on Traditional and Nontraditional Providers

Among all consumers, 51 percent say they will only use a traditional provider. However, there is a considerable divide between older and younger generations on this preference. While only 29 percent of Traditionalists say they would consider using a nontraditional provider for future financial services needs, 41 percent of Baby Boomers, 62 percent of Generation Xers and 66 percent of Millennials are open to the idea.

Perceived Impact of Mobile Payments

Optimism about the growth of mobile payments also broke down along generational lines. Twenty percent of consumers expect mobile payments to become a major source of in-store payments in 5 years; 10 percent of Traditionalists, 19 percent of Baby Boomers, 17 percent of Generation Xers and 32 percent of Millennials agree.

Raddon Financial Group conducts broad consumer and small business research on a semi-annual basis; in-depth reports are made available to Raddon clients in May and October of each year.

Research Methodology

The consumer research survey of 1,200 U.S. adults was conducted online by Raddon Financial Group in February 2015. Survey respondents are represented by four generational age groups.

Age Group Definitions

  • Traditionalists – born between 1922-1945
  • Boomers – born between 1946-1964
  • Generation X – born between 1965-1978
  • Millennials – born between 1979-1999

Additional Resources:

  • Spring 2015 Raddon Financial Group National Consumer Research Infographic – http://fisv.co/1TfEGop
  • The Raddon Report – www.theraddonreport.com

About Raddon Financial Group

Founded in 1983, Raddon Financial Group, part of Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), arms financial industry decision-makers with objective data gained through innovative research techniques and unique database resources. Raddon Financial Group also provides strategic guidance, tactical solutions and marketing solutions to meet the challenges of the continually changing financial industry. For more information, visit www.raddon.com.