BMO Survey: One Third of Canadians Using AI to Manage Finances

• 55% of Gen Z use AI to help manage their finances and investments – more than any other generation.
• 68% do not believe AI understands how emotions influence financial planning.

TORONTO, July 29, 2024 /CNW/ - The BMO Real Financial Progress Index reveals a growing number of Canadians, notably Gen Z, are using artificial intelligence (AI) to help manage their finances and investments.

Among the 33% of Canadians using AI to help manage their finances, the most common uses include:

• Learning more about personal finance topics (45%),
• Creating and/or updating household budgets (43%),
• Identifying new investment strategies (42%),
• Building savings (40%), and
• Creating and/or updating their financial plans (40%).

While AI is helping Canadians manage some aspects of finances, over two thirds (68%) say AI cannot understand how emotions influence financial planning.

"AI is a transformative technology that can instantly analyze information and generate ideas, but people's relationship with money is complex, personal and emotional," said Gayle Ramsay, Head, Everyday Banking Segment & Customer Growth, BMO. "By making it easier to help manage finances, AI is proving a powerful tool to build financial literacy and make informed financial decisions, and together with guidance from a professional advisor, more Canadians can be empowered to conveniently manage their money, achieve their goals and make real financial progress."

How Canadians Are Using AI

The survey highlights how AI is continuing to shape how Canadians learn, work, and communicate, including:

• Reshaping Research: More than half (54%) are using AI to ask questions about topics of interest and 37% are using the technology for data analysis.
• Productivity Planning: Over a third are leveraging AI to build business, travel, exercise and meal plans (36%) and manage their schedules (36%).
• Changing Content Creation: Many Canadians are using AI in their creative process including developing written drafts (41%) and photo and/or video editing (39%)
• Accessible Intelligence: More than half believe AI can help people make more informed financial decisions (52%) and makes financial planning more accessible for everyone (51%).
• Optimistic Outlook: Many of those who do not currently use it for personal financial management are considering using the technology to learn more about personal finance topics (30%), increase their savings (28%), find new investment strategies (27%), create and/or update their household budgets (27%) and financial plans (25%), and for retirement planning (22%).

The AI Generation Gap

As Gen Z Canadians begin navigating life changes, over half (55%) are leveraging AI to plan for upcoming financial milestones – more than any generation. Gen Z are the most likely to use AI to ask questions about topics of interest (79%), create written drafts (72%), build business, travel, exercise and/or meal plans (63%), and manage their finances and investments (55%).

The increased adoption of AI-powered tools coincides with Gen Z's ongoing life changes and their growing concerns about their finances. In the last six months, 24% of Gen Z attended university or college, 20% switched jobs, 15% needed to make a large purchase such as a car, home, etc., and 13% started a business. However, 91% of Gen Z say concerns about their overall financial situation is the leading source of financial anxiety, followed by fear of unknown expenses (90%), housing costs (86%), and keeping up with monthly bills (82%).

61% of Gen Z believe AI can help people make more informed financial decisions and 53% are confident AI tools can help them make real financial progress.

Making Real Financial Progress with BMO's Digital Tools

Among the 85% of Canadians who believe they are making real financial progress, 78% are confident in their financial situation and 44% believe AI-powered tools can help them make real financial progress.

BMO CashTrack is an award-winning solution that leverages AI and machine learning models to provide customers with financial insights to intelligently and accurately predict cash shortfalls up to seven days in advance across a customer's accounts.

The solution is among the many features fully integrated into BMO's wider personal financial management solution, BMO Insights. Customers can get help saving more, monitoring spending and account values, and spotting unusual activity with 25 BMO Insights that provide customers free, quick, and personalized views of their daily spending to help them make informed decisions.

Customers can also build financial literacy, monitor financial plans, and reach financial goals through BMO's innovative digital tools and resources: 

• BMO SmartProgress: This tool helps customers learn more about important personal finance topics and build financial literacy anywhere and at any time. It is a free, online financial education platform featuring customized, interactive content, including videos and tools, on complex financial planning topics including budgeting and credit management, homeownership and investing.
• BMO CreditView: Customers can quickly and easily check their credit scores and access new tools and advice to manage their credit profile online and on mobile.
• BMO Savings Amplifier Account: To help make saving easy and automatic, BMO's new Savings Amplifier Account offers no monthly fees, a competitive interest rate, and unlimited no-fee transfers to other BMO accounts. In addition, its digital Savings Goals feature enables customers to set, track, and manage their financial goals.

To learn more about how BMO can help customers make financial progress, visit www.bmo.com/main/personal.

About the BMO Real Financial Progress Index

Launched in February 2021, the BMO Real Financial Progress Index is an indicator of how consumers feel about their personal finances and whether they are making financial progress. The index aims to spark dialogue that will help consumers reach their financial goals and to humanize a topic that causes anxiety for many – money.

The research detailed in this document was conducted by Ipsos in Canada from June 3^rd to 20^th, 2024. A sample of n=2,500 adults ages 18+ in Canada were collected via the Ipsos panel. Quotas and weighting were used to ensure the sample's composition reflects that of the Canadian population according to census parameters. This survey has a credibility interval of +/- 2.4 per cent 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had all Canadian adults 18+ been surveyed.

About BMO Financial Group

BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.4 trillion as of April 30, 2024. Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a diverse team of highly engaged employees providing a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services to 13 million customers across Canada, the United States, and in select markets globally. Driven by a single purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future, and inclusive society.

SOURCE BMO Financial Group

Media Contact: Anke Suwanda, Toronto, [email protected], [phone]