US millennials (69%) — aged 18 to 34 years — were more likely to trust financial institutions, a trust that was still missing compared to consumers age 35 to 54 (59%) and 55 and over (54%), according to the 2015 Makovsky Wall Street Reputation Study.
In addition, millennials were more likely to change to an alternative digital financial services provider because of unauthorized access and theft of personal data (79%), negative news relating to their financial institution (75%), lower costs or fees (76%), and the availability of advanced and mobile technology for more helpful financial services (68%).
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These are major findings of the fourth annual Makovsky Wall Street Reputation Study, designed to determine the state of reputation of the finance industry and identify best practices and emerging trends and issues.
The study was conducted by Ebiquity in March 2015.
One of the reasons why millennial trust in financial institutions lags the rest of the population could be the lingering effects of the financial crisis and recession.
When asked, "over the past seven years how has the financial crisis impacted your lifestyle?," U.S. millennials reported that they had been negatively impacted more than consumers age 55 and over.
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By GlobalDataTop responses by millennials were: not able to save (live paycheck to paycheck) (33%), significant spending cut backs (29%) and financial hardships for me and my family (27%).
Millennials reported a significantly lower loss in their retirement accounts, compared to other age groups.
Four out of ten U.S. millennials feel that failure to protect personal information and financial information is the biggest threat to a financial service institution’s reputation.
Also a higher percentage of millennials reported that not keeping up with new technology and service innovations was a big threat to financial service firms’ reputation.
Further indicating an emphasis of technology for financial services, millennials (49%) would be much more likely to consider banking and financial services from digital alternative providers like Google, Apple or Amazon is available, compared to consumers age 35 to 54 (37%) and age 55 and over ( 16%).
