2026 Outlook from Alkami Execs: AI for RCFIs, Anticipatory Banking, Fraud Defense, Branch Digitization

Stephen Bohanon

Stephen Bohanon, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer
In 2026, the ultimate competitive advantage for RCFIs will be the intentional convergence of the Predictive, Prescriptive, and Protective elements of artificial intelligence (AI). This means leveraging digital banking tools that anticipate needs (Predictive), offer proactive financial advice (Prescriptive), and actively safeguard account holders' funds (Protective). This paradigm shift toward anticipatory banking and AI-driven recommendations will enable RCFIs to move beyond traditional personalization to deliver a truly relevant digital banking experience.
 
Julie Hoagland, Chief Human Resources Officer 
In 2026, HR teams must leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and automation tools to deliver a high-touch culture and stay competitive in attracting top talent. As technology integrates across all industries, the competition for top tech talent will only intensify, particularly in the digital banking sector, demanding innovative hiring strategies. To support this, HR leaders would benefit from  further leveraging AI tools to streamline time-intensive administrative tasks – alleviating strain and burnout, and enabling them to focus on critical, high-touch priorities like culture, talent acquisition, and retention.
 
Marla Pieton, VP, Brand, Public Relations & Influencer Marketing
Credit union and bank marketers should embrace technology as the great equalizer to deliver anticipatory banking to account holders. This requires acknowledging generational expectations, as younger cohorts like Gen Z and Millennials are technologically dependent and expect seamless, personalized digital banking experiences. According to Alkami’s research1, 50% of digital banking consumers would switch providers for a better digital experience, and over half (53%) of Gen Z and Millennials wish their financial institution offered a more personalized banking experience. Therefore, the marketing strategy must evolve to transform the digital banking platform from a primary service channel into an integrated digital sales and service channel. This transformation necessitates integrating the core technology stack: a high-performing digital banking engine, a frictionless account opening experience, and a data and marketing engine that reads both transaction and engagement signals to propel relevant offers.
 
The growing influence of social media on financial decision-making, especially among younger generations, is also undeniable. Many Gen Zs and Millennials turn to these platforms for financial advice, a trend far less prevalent in older demographics. This further underscores the critical importance for financial institutions to leverage online, mobile, and digital banking platforms to effectively reach and engage younger account holders with relevant offers and guidance. For this digital-native cohort, the digital experience is the brand experience. It must be paramount, competing not just with other financial apps, but with the best digital interactions they encounter throughout their day.
 
1The Center for Generational Kinetics research, commissioned by Alkami. Fifteen hundred U.S. participants (Ages 22-65). Survey was conducted online from February 24, 2025, to March 14, 2025.
 
Deep Varma, Chief Technology Officer 
2026 will be the year fintech platforms truly operationalize generative artificial intelligence (GenAI). We’ll see GenAI, large language models (LLMs), and the model context protocol (MCP) woven directly into digital banking experiences and internal workflows, enabling real-time, personalized, and context-aware interactions across the entire account holder journey.

On the engineering side, LLMs will sit natively inside the fintech SDLC — generating code, creating test cases, drafting documentation, and providing architectural guidance. The impact on productivity will be meaningful, especially for routine or repetitive engineering tasks.

MCP will emerge as the essential middleware layer enabling LLMs to interact safely with financial systems. MCP servers will become standard in modern fintech stacks, giving LLMs and AI agents a secure, auditable way to read, write, and take action on financial data — from account details to transaction histories — without compromising compliance or safety.
As GenAI and agent-driven workflows mature, the industry will tighten engineering controls around model outputs, agent actions, data permissions, and compliance logging. By 2026, auditability and traceability will no longer be add-ons; they’ll be built-in expectations for every engineering team adopting AI at scale.

Brad Cranford, Director, Product Management
In 2026, financial institutions must prepare for a more nuanced and behaviorally-driven approach to fighting fraud: the lines between account takeover, scams, and mule activity are blurring, and it's no longer enough to treat them as isolated threats. We're seeing the rise of sophisticated "mule accounts" where fraudsters either create, recruit, or manipulate users to move illicit funds. These accounts often sit dormant before suddenly becoming active, making detection difficult without behavioral insights. Financial institutions will need to evolve their fraud strategies to distinguish between intentional accomplices and unknowing victims and to identify warning signs before the money moves.
 
At the same time, operational pressure is mounting. Many fraud teams are under-resourced, while data is scattered across systems, slowing down investigations and increasing the risk of missed signals. In response, financial institutions must prioritize centralized fraud operations, improved data orchestration, and user-level behavioral models that track risk across the entire account lifecycle. Preparing for 2026 within digital banking means investing in collaborative models for fraud data, staff education to improve fraud labeling, and tools that reduce manual investigation effort while scaling protection. The key is early visibility, unified intelligence, and proactive engagement before losses occur.

Taylor Adkins, VP Product Management
In 2026, treasury success will hinge on flexible and intelligent platforms that meet businesses where they work and help them move money smarter. As we move into 2026, financial institutions will need to shift their approach to treasury services by prioritizing adaptability over rigidity. Business clients, from solo entrepreneurs to large corporations, are demanding intuitive tools that align with how they actually work. The traditional one-size-fits-all model is no longer sustainable. The future of treasury will center on scalable, flexible platforms that accommodate everything from plug-and-play experiences for small businesses to deep ERP integrations for mid-market and enterprise clients that conform to the business's industry and segmentation, starting with a seamless business account opening experience. Financial institutions that succeed will be those that offer personalized user journeys and meet clients where they operate, whether that’s on a desktop, mobile device, or inside an accounting platform.

In 2026, we also expect a growing emphasis on automation, insight, and intelligent risk control. Businesses want to move money smarter, not just faster, using tools that reduce manual effort and mitigate risk in real time. Our investment in centralized, policy-based risk management reflects this shift, giving institutions and their clients the ability to dynamically enforce commercial limits and entitlements based on configurable conditions. These advanced controls will help proactively manage both fraud and exposure risk across users, accounts, and payment types. Combined with smarter money movement and real-time financial analytics, treasury will become not just a service, but a strategic tool for planning, protection, and growth.

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