The More AI Does, the More Branches Matter

An asteroid killed the dinosaurs. Video killed the radio star. AI will kill the bank branch. 

Each of those statements is a little true and a little false. Because the disruptive force didn’t eliminate the endangered species – it triggered (or is triggering) significant evolution.  

Dinosaur DNA lives on in birds. Thanks to Spotify algorithms, musicians still break through without video. And bank branches are being reimagined in exciting new ways, with AI offering personalization and relationship-building opportunities that were previously impossible. 

The Demise of Branches Has Been Greatly Exaggerated 

From industry consolidation to mobile banking to fintech challengers, traditional bank and credit union branches have faced wave after wave of existential pressure. Yet, Statistica reports that there were approximately 4,000 more FDIC-insured bank branches in the United States in 2024 than in 2000. Instead of being disrupted out of existence, the branch adapted. 

And now, perhaps counterintuitively, banks are investing big in branches again. National brands such as Chase, PNC, and Bank of America have announced plans to add hundreds of new locations in the next three years, and 61% of credit unions planned branch expansion in 2025.  

One word explains much of this: deposits. But deposits follow trust, and trust follows connection. The branch, it turns out, is still one of the most effective tools ever invented for building both. 

Consumers Still Want In-Person Banking, But also Reinvention 

As recently as 2025, Accenture’s Global Banking Consumer Study found that 63% of consumers like the idea of a physical bank that helps them manage their financial lives. They expressed clear preferences for in-person interactions when applying for loans, opening accounts, and getting financial or investment advice.  

But “branches” no longer mean brick buildings downtown. First came suburban drive-thrus and supermarket locations. Then Capital One and others pioneered café-style lounges. Now digital-first banks and fintechs are piloting micro-branches and smart booths such as pop-up locations at music festivals, college campuses and community events. Accenture found that 76% of consumers said they’d be interested in these more ephemeral in-person experiences, including 85% of millennials. 

The physical channel isn’t dying, but it is diversifying. And AI will only accelerate this evolution. 

How AI Can Reinvent the Branch Experience 

AI is extraordinarily good at handling the transactional layer of banking: account inquiries, fraud alerts, balance checks, preapproved offers and routine problem resolution. Gartner predicts that, by 2029, agentic AI will autonomously resolve 80% of common customer service issues without human intervention. That sounds like a threat to the branch, but it could be a gift. 

The Bank Administration Institute recently curated perspectives from banking executives on what AI will mean for the in-branch experience.  

Jaime Dominguez, director of strategy for retail banking at Fiserv, envisions AI greeting customers at the door using beacon technology and biometrics to identify their needs before a human employee even says “hello.” This will enable staff to skip the transactional preamble and go straight to personalized assistance.  

Nicole Sturgill, executive advisor at CEB, believes AI will increasingly automate customers’ routine financial tasks, ultimately empowering branch employees to become more consultative subject matter experts rather than transaction processors.  

And Gary Ambrosino, president and CEO of TimeTrade banking software, argues that the net effect will be something unexpected: “Banking will become much more human again — reverting back to personalized, local relationships, like banks used to have with their customers.” The reason, he believes, is that even as automation handles more, customers will continue to seek advice and validation from trusted human professionals. 

The recurring theme: if AI both absorbs routine tasks and helps employees better serve their customers, the branch is freed to do what it was always best at: building trust, providing guidance, educating/cross-selling/upselling, making community connections and showing up for customers at high-stakes moments.  

How Financial Marketers Can Apply AI In Branches, Authentically and Strategically 

Here are a few key tips and tenets: 

Start with your brand, not your technology. Before deploying AI in the branch experience, go back to your institution’s core value proposition. Do you stand for personal service? Community commitment? Financial empowerment? AI should enhance that promise. Whether that means personalized digital signage, a smart queue that reduces wait time or an AI-assisted product comparison tool, the technology should feel like a natural extension of who you are, not a feature bolted on. 

Market moments, not channels. The old “visit us in branch / bank from anywhere” framing sets up a false choice. Consumers don’t think in channels; they think in situations. AI-powered personalization now makes it possible to identify those moments with precision and deliver the right message, including when to invite someone into a branch for a real conversation. 

Reposition the branch as a brand asset. If AI is handling routine service, the branch needs to stand for something more than transactions. Every branch touchpoint – the design, the staff, services, community events – is a brand-building investment. Capital One’s café concept isn’t about banking; it’s about belonging. A community credit union’s branch isn’t a delivery point; it’s a statement about who they serve and why it matters. Marketers should own that narrative. 

Don’t replace what people already love. Remember why your in-branch customers prefer in-person banking in the first place. The one-to-one relationship with a trusted employee. The express lane for commercial customers. The jar of lollipops. Whatever it is! Build on what works, and don’t optimize it out of existence in the name of tech. 

Push for the right metrics. If the branch’s job has shifted from transaction volume to relationship depth, trust-building, and new account acquisition, then foot traffic and teller throughput are the wrong scorecards. New accounts opened, deposit growth, product depth per relationship, and branch-level NPS are more meaningful measures. 

Looking Ahead 

What these two trends reveal, taken together, is a financial services landscape that isn’t choosing between digital and human. The branch deepens trust and relationships. AI enhances efficiency and relevance. Neither works as well without the other. 

The institutions that will win aren’t the ones with the most sophisticated AI or the most branches. They’re the ones that build marketing strategies around the brand and customer experience.