European banks say AI will define the “bank of the future” – and early adopters will set the pace by 2030 – study
. AI will define the next generation of banking: 86% of European bank leaders say AI will fundamentally reshape retail banking by 2030 and 61% believe early adopters will significantly outperform or dominate the market.
. A growing divide is emerging: between banks using AI to optimise today’s operating model and those embedding it into decisions that drive future growth and customer outcomes – from fraud detection to personalised services and agentic capabilities.
. Banks are taking distinct approaches to AI adoption: from Efficiency Seekers to Trust Builders, Competitor Chasers and Compliance Keepers, the choices they make today are shaping how value is created.
New research from Visa, a global leader in digital payments, shows that European bank executives believe artificial intelligence will not just improve efficiency, but fundamentally redefine what the bank of the future looks like – with those moving first expected to pull decisively ahead over the next decade.
The study, authored by Visa Consulting and Analytics (VCA), was based on responses from 325 senior decision-makers across 17 European markets and points to a clear shift from experimentation to execution. Yet a growing divide is emerging – between banks using AI to optimise today’s operating model, and those embedding it into the decisions that shape tomorrow’s.
Key findings include:
. More than 90% of European banks already using some form of AI across their major business functions.
. 86% of European banking leaders believe AI will reshape retail banking by 2030, while 61% expect early movers to dominate their markets.
. Almost half of banks (48%) continue to anchor investment around operational efficiency or employee productivity, while fewer than one in three (30%) cite customer experience or fraud prevention as their primary AI driver.
. Where AI is applied makes a critical difference: organisations deploying it in high‑volume, real-time environments that improve customer outcomes – including real-time decisioning, fraud detection, and personalised services– are 40% more likely to achieve transformational gains.
. By contrast, where AI is applied more peripherally – such as in product development or lending – its impact is more limited and tends to plateau sooner.
The research highlights how banks are taking distinct approaches to AI adoption – and how those choices are shaping outcomes. Around half of banks are Efficiency Seekers (48%), focused mainly on cost reduction and operational efficiency. Trust Builders (30%) prioritise AI investment around customer outcomes, while Competitor Chasers (15%) are investing in response to market pressure. A small group, Compliance Keepers (7%), focus primarily on meeting regulatory requirements.
Trust Builders stand out. They are more common among digital-first banks and are far more likely to say AI is improving customer trust – particularly through faster fraud detection and more personalised services. They also see stronger productivity gains, with 42% of employees saving two or more hours a week, compared to 28% among Efficiency Seekers. This highlights how different approaches to AI adoption are already translating into uneven outcomes across the sector.
“AI will define the next generation of banking, but it won’t be delivered in isolated pilots or side projects. It will depend on how well banks rewire the core of their organisation to support it,” said Mandy Lamb, Head of Value-Added Services, Visa Europe. “The opportunity now is to build for scale – with modern, flexible systems, connected data, and AI embedded directly into real-time decisions. Banks that get these foundations right will move faster, adapt more quickly, and deliver more secure, relevant and seamless experiences their customers are looking for.”
“Our research shows that AI adoption across European banking is already broad, but the results are far from equal. Most banks are seeing incremental gains, while a smaller group is delivering sustained, compounding impact,” said Claudio Di Nella, Head of Visa Consulting and Analytics, Visa Europe. “The difference comes down to execution. The banks pulling ahead are embedding AI into live decision flows, scaling it across functions, and holding themselves to clear performance metrics. They are not experimenting at the edges – they are building AI into how the business runs.”
Visa’s From AI Promise to AI Performance research, including recommendations for advancing AI maturity, is available here.
About the research
Research was commissioned by Visa (NYSE: V) and conducted by Visa Consulting & Analytics among 325 senior decision-makers at banks across 17 European markets, based on survey responses assessing AI adoption and strategy in retail banking.
