Tink, a European Open Banking platform, has conducted a study revealing that an estimated 40% of individuals in the UK desire their banks to provide tools for monitoring their environmental impact. The research, based on a survey of over 2,000 UK consumers and 113 senior retail banking executives, emphasizes the opportunity for banks to play a more significant role in assisting customers on their sustainability journey.

Approximately 37% of respondents expressed their wish for banks to do more in aiding them in reducing their environmental footprint. The study also indicates that 32% of participants specifically seek an overview of their CO2 emissions from transactions across all their bank accounts in one centralized location. Despite the evident demand for environmental impact management tools through banks, the research found that only 17% of banking customers are actively utilising such services, suggesting a discrepancy between customer appetite and adoption of sustainability-related offerings.

Insights gathered from Tink's survey of banking executives provide insight into this mismatch. Presently, a mere 24% of banks offer customers tools to comprehend their carbon footprint based on spending patterns. Encouragingly, the study reveals that 40% of banks are actively working towards delivering this service, with 50% engaging in fintech partnerships to facilitate the process.

Additionally, 30% of banks express their desire to offer tools for tracking customers' carbon impact but currently lack concrete plans to do so. While this progress opens doors for increased access to desired carbon tracking tools, it also highlights the need for banks to improve customer awareness as these services become available. The UK & IE Banking Director at Tink expressed enthusiasm about the high numbers of customers seeking sustainable choices through their banks and commended the banks that are already addressing this demand.

She emphasised the importance of ramping up customer engagement to ensure easy access to these tools, noting that banks capable of doing so will gain loyalty from both existing and new customers. Although many banks acknowledge the importance of supporting customers on their sustainability journey, the findings suggest that not all banks are investing in this opportunity. While 51% of banks in Tink's research plan to maintain or increase investment in sustainability-related tools, a significant proportion (46%) intend to decrease or halt such investment.

Banks that fail to prioritize sustainability offerings risk losing customers to competitors who are already providing these tools. More than a quarter (28%) of respondents stated they would switch to a different bank if it enabled them to track the environmental impact of their purchases. The company's executive further emphasised that banks must not miss the chance to compete in the sustainability sector and foster better customer engagement.

By leveraging technology offered by fintech partners, banks can swiftly catch up by seamlessly integrating sustainability features into their offerings. Ultimately, the banking industry has the opportunity to contribute to a more sustainable future by driving the adoption of tools that help customers understand and manage their carbon footprints. Collaborations with climate engagement solutions, such as ecolytiq, enable banks to easily incorporate sustainability services and meet their customers' needs.

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