Citi Group and Bank of America have become the latest US banks to restrict AI agents from accessing customer accounts.
Major banks have voiced concerns to regulators that AI agents could transfer idle funds in pursuit of higher yields, leading to deposit outflows. Citi stated that it does not permit third-party AI agents or assistants to log into customer accounts or directly initiate transactions within its digital banking platform, saying the move is aimed at protecting customer accounts and information security. Bank of America's Brian Moynihan also said that until relevant rules are established and the ultimate responsibility for AI-authorized payments is clarified, the bank is restricting AI agent access to retail deposits. "We hold the view that money moving out of an account must go through human review and authorization," Moynihan said in an interview on Wednesday. "We are in talks with AI agent service providers: you certainly don't want a customer showing up saying funds were mysteriously transferred out of their account to unknown destinations, all done by an AI agent." A person familiar with the matter confirmed that Bank of America has already implemented access restrictions.
After Meta launched its Muse AI personal assistant in September this year, market concerns grew that such bots could transfer large amounts of idle deposits out of banks on behalf of users to optimize yields, prompting major banks to take the aforementioned measures. Multiple AI companies are racing to launch tools and chatbots that help consumers manage personal finances.
A report published by Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok further amplified these concerns. He warned that AI assistants could automatically transfer household cash into accounts yielding 3.3% to 5%, while the average interest rate on US checking accounts is only 0.1%. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo hold $1.6 trillion in non-interest-bearing deposits, accounting for 16% of their liabilities. If interest of 3% were paid on these funds, it would cost $47 billion annually, nearly equivalent to half of the three banks' combined annual profits. If banks were forced to raise retail deposit rates to retain funds, it would severely erode profits. He wrote: "If all households used AI agents to optimize cash yields, banks would lose a large amount of low-cost deposits used for lending, which would pose risks to the entire financial system."
According to people familiar with the matter, Wall Street executives have contacted Federal Reserve supervisory officials to express concerns about a growing number of consumers using AI agents to conduct financial transactions on their behalf. The Federal Reserve declined to comment. Regulators have privately endorsed banks' efforts to block AI agents from accessing customer accounts. Regulatory officials believe it is necessary to clarify at the legal level how customers authorize autonomous intelligent technology to handle financial transactions on their behalf, and who should bear responsibility if problems arise.
Citi stated that customers can still authorize certain open banking service providers to obtain read-only access to their accounts. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said this week that the bank will restrict AI agents from accessing customer accounts "because there is no way to guard against rogue agents, and there could be thousands of them." Dimon said on the bank's third-quarter earnings call: "We must protect customers in a proper way, and we are also developing corresponding protective tools. In the meantime, we will not casually allow any external agent to connect to the bank's systems, as this is too risky for customers and for JPMorgan." Christoph Stegmeier, a senior partner at Simon-Kucher & Partners consulting firm, believes banks need to find incentives to retain depositors, such as expanding loyalty programs and adjusting loan rates accordingly. "We must increase the customer stickiness of deposit products," Stegmeier said.
Comments