From Shiny Toy to Trusted Engine: Generative AI in Financial Services 

Artificial intelligence is entering a new chapter in financial services. What was once hype is now real: generative AI in financial services is moving beyond proofs of concept and into day-to-day workflows that matter. From fraud detection and compliance to personalization and operational efficiency, the shift is underway. 

And far from slowing down, adoption is accelerating. The U.S. generative AI market is expected to surge from $5 billion—where it was two years ago—to nearly $241 billion by 2033. 

For financial institutions and fintechs, the urgency is clear. Fraud losses are escalating at pace: 60% of institutions reported an increase in fraud in the past year, with nearly one-third losing more than $1 million in direct fraud losses.  

No wonder the industry is leaning into technology at scale—99% of financial organizations now use AI or machine learning in their fraud defenses and 93% believe AI will fundamentally transform detection. 

Yet adoption isn’t evenly distributed. The global generative AI in banking market is forecast to grow from $1.16 billion in 2024 to $3.39 billion by 2029, a 23.9% CAGR. Still, only 35% of banks qualify as “AI leaders”—institutions already capturing measurable gains from advanced capabilities while the rest remain stuck in pilots, unable to scale or capture value. 

The next phase is being defined by agentic AI—intelligent systems capable of autonomous action within guardrails. Consider transaction monitoring: instead of flagging suspicious activity for manual review, an agentic system could dynamically freeze and re-route questionable transactions, trigger secondary verification and alert customers in real-time—all while staying aligned with compliance frameworks.  

Generative AI doesn’t disappear in this model; it underpins the intelligence layer, analyzing patterns, customer behaviors, and contextual data to guide the agent’s actions. Together, the technologies transform fraud defense from reactive to proactive. This is where the future of AI in financial services is headed: not just smarter tools, but systems that can act, adapt, and scale with confidence. 

This is a natural evolution of our philosophy: bold innovation meets rock-solid reliability. Our globally integrated platform and configurable building-block solutions are already designed to empower financial leaders to move fast without sacrificing trust. 

With agentic and generative AI working in tandem, financial institutions can unlock speed, precision and differentiation — while maintaining the reliability and control regulators and customers demand. 

And here’s the good news: it’s not too late. The market is still being shaped. Institutions that start laying the groundwork now—governance frameworks, new skillsets, AI-enabled workflows—will not only catch up but leap ahead.  

The leaders of tomorrow won’t just use AI; they’ll operationalize it, scale it and make it a trusted engine for growth.