White Clay Advises Banks and Credit Unions to Prioritize Relationships in 2025

Understanding customer relationships helps financial institutions deliver personalized and differentiated experiences

White Clay, a fintech that guides banks and credit unions to build deeper and more profitable relationships, advises financial institutions to focus on defining, understanding, and strengthening relationships to position themselves as their customers’ primary financial institution.

Financial institutions’ business models are shifting. While gathering deposits remains a top priority for banks and credit unions in 2025, they must also balance this focus with the growing demand for lending. To stay competitive, financial institutions must rethink how they approach customer relationships, moving from a transactional to relationship-based model.

While many financial institutions believe they already operate this way, a recent White Clay survey reveals a disconnect: 68% of FI users do not feel known by their primary institution, and nearly a third (31%) feel like just another account number. This highlights customers’ need for personalized service and financial guidance, with the same survey reporting that half of FI users would consider switching their primary institution if another bank or credit union offered more personalized financial guidance.

Mac Thompson, CEO and co-founder of White Clay, observes, "The banking landscape is evolving rapidly in response to economic shifts and consumer behaviors. Financial institutions are juggling numerous priorities, for example, investing in treasury management solutions to attract new customers, refining balance sheet strategies, and finding ways to grow loans and deposits. At the same time, they are competing for customers’ operating accounts and exploring effective incentive strategies. With all of these factors at play, it’s time for institutions to return to the basics: building and strengthening relationships.”

To win and retain customers’ operating accounts, banks and credit unions need to know how customers perceive and engage with them. This involves having a complete view of customer relationships to find ways to strengthen them. For example, institutions can use this data to deploy different relationship management strategies based on factors like segments and primacy.

With this visibility, institutions can then create intelligent, targeted, granular pricing strategies and meaningful incentive programs that drive profitability. By rewarding bankers for addressing customers’ overall relationship needs — rather than simply selling individual products — banks and credit unions can foster long-term loyalty. This holistic approach enables bankers to move beyond transactional interactions and become trusted advisors. Additionally, these programs provide valuable metrics and training opportunities to help bankers better understand and serve their customers’ needs.

Thomspon continued, "As we approach 2025, institutions have a unique opportunity to redefine their role in customers’ lives. By prioritizing relationships, banks and credit unions can deliver personalized and meaningful experiences that establish them as customers’ primary institution.”