Macro Volatility Forces Change in US Bank Strategy

Key Takeaways:

• Since 2019, Chase has outspent its peers in the US retail bank cohort on digital advertising by roughly 3x (on average) and has seen commensurate success in fostering mobile download and MAU growth, per Pathmatics by ST data. Of the cohort, Chase and Wells Fargo (the top two largest spenders on ads since 2019) saw the greatest gains in mobile app downloads in 3Q23, up 13% YoY and 8% YoY, respectively, followed by Citi, TD Bank and BofA at 6%, 4% and <1% YoY, respectively

• Despite being the third largest US bank and continually accelerating its advertising efforts, Citi has had trouble attracting consumers to its app, and comprises only 9% of MAUs in the cohort, compared to ~34% each for BofA and Chase and 20% for Wells Fargo

  • Citi has seen the greatest increase in the penetration rate of “paid” downloads, but yet its share of voice on mobile ad networks relative to its peers was just 0.01% and 0.08% on Instagram and TikTok, respectively, from Jul’23 to Oct’23

  • Pathmatics by ST data also shows that Citi allocated only 2% of its total US ad spend towards its consumer banking product line from 1Q23-3Q23 vs competitors TD Bank (32%), Wells Fargo (19%), and JPM Chase (10%)

• According to Pathmatics by ST data, analyzing creatives with the word “refinance” for the retail bank cohort indicates that advertising strategies towards existing homeowners have shifted as rising interest rates have weighed on consumer appetite for home refinancing. The total number of creatives with the word “refinance” from 1Q23-3Q23 were down a collective 77% compared to 2022 (1Q22-3Q22) and -66% compared to 2021 (1Q21-3Q21) when interest rates were significantly lower

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