Article
Trust in our industry didn’t disappear overnight. But we can bring it back.
January 29, 2026
After years of new frameworks and digital transformation (for better or worse), one word is beginning to cut through all the noise: trust.
Amidst the turbulence of the past 20 (yes, 20) years of rather substantial change in consumer banking, it feels like as an industry, we are collectively at a reset point. There’s a renewed focus on trust, and more importantly on rebuilding the trust that has eroded through 20 years of change.
Some of it eroded due to decisions made within financial services- phasing out humans and replacing them by poor digital journeys, for example. Some of the erosion came from outside the industry, due to broader shifts, such as the rise of social media, global crises like Covid, and a general fraying of institutional confidence.
Why trust is back on the agenda
Trust is one of those tricky beasts you don’t realise you’re missing until it’s gone. And when it’s gone across so many sectors, it’s fair to ask: can one industry really turn the tide on itself?
There’s no denying that financial services are deeply embedded in people’s lives. From the first savings account to navigating redundancy, illness, family change, or retirement, this industry is present. But being there isn’t the same as being trusted.
Research by Edelman showed that financial services remains one of the least trusted sectors globally. The Financial Conduct Authority Financial Lives Survey found that while many consumers feel their bank or provider treats them fairly, trust drops significantly when people hit difficulties in life. But customers haven’t closed the door. They want their trust to be won back. Last year's Accenture Banking Consumer Study shows that customers do not feel loyalty simply due to functional convenience but rather want deeper connections and experiences that address their individual expectations.
Even a fragile structure can be rebuilt if the will is there
The truth is, we don’t know if one industry can make any difference. But there seems to be a widespread consensus that because Financial Services is such a core pillar of society, we must try. And the passion we see every day among firms, teams, and individuals trying to do better, is what we believe has delivered an admirable drive, cross-industry, to regain consumer and community trust.
Trust is built in how firms show up in the hard moments. It’s built when support signals understanding, not just policy and when journeys are designed for real lives, not just for sales. We believe trust can be designed for and we see an increasing amount of firms invest in this. The regulator is actively supporting this with policy initiatives such as Targeted Support, but also more implicitly by encouraging firms to go the extra mile.
The foundational blocks to rebuild trust are here. Some of these blocks are past classics, such as human support. Others are brand new technologies which, if designed and executed well, could be transformative. But how we bring this all together, is the big question of this year. Because much like the Jenga tower we all know, you have to be careful with which blocks you move, and how you move them.
That’s why we’re framing 2026 around trust, and why we’re launching our In […] We Trust? series- a set of industry conversations about what trust really looks like in practice, across AI, Targeted Support, and the other themes shaping our sector this year.
Follow Life Moments for updates on our In [...] We Trust events.
