Financial Services Lead AI Adoption, Deploying AI in 27 of 75 Tasks and Planning Budget Increases

TL;DR: Financial services firms apply AI to 27 of 75 tracked tasks, more than media/advertising and healthcare combined, and 85% intend to boost AI budgets next year.

The data come from a PYMNTS Intelligence survey of 60 senior technology executives at U.S. enterprises with at least $1 billion in annual revenue, conducted in March 2026. Firms reported the highest AI use in areas with established rules—revenue recognition, accounting close, credit risk scoring, and sales forecasting—where structured workflows ease deployment. For example, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) traded near $180 per share, giving it a market cap of roughly $460 billion and was up 0.8 % on September 25, 2025; Bank of America (BAC) stood at $30 per share, market cap near $300 billion, down 0.3 % the same day.

Sixty‑five percent of respondents use AI for revenue recognition and accounting close, the top adoption rate in the sector. Sixty percent also deploy AI for credit risk assessment and for sales forecasting and pipeline optimization. Eighty‑five percent plan to increase AI spending over the next twelve months, citing productivity gains and competitive positioning as the main drivers.

The concentration of AI in back‑office functions gives financial firms a measurable edge in efficiency and risk management, while lower adoption in customer‑facing tasks such as KYC/KYB (20 %) and churn prediction (30 %) highlights a data‑quality barrier. Thirty percent of executives flag fragmented data as the biggest obstacle, limiting AI’s expansion into broader decision‑making and client engagement. Overcoming this hurdle could let leaders extend their lead into product innovation and personalized services.

Watch for pilot projects in know‑your‑customer and churn‑reduction as firms invest in data‑integration tools to unlock the next wave of AI applications.