Millennials are Cautious Banking Customers, Survey Finds

The TD Bank Financial Education Survey polled those aged 18-34 on their banking habits.

Millennials are cautious banking customers and take few risks when managing their money, according to findings from the TD Bank Financial Education Survey.

The survey defines millennials as those age 18-34, and surveyed 2,000 such consumers. Overall, 47 percent of respondents describe their financial personality as being cautious when it comes to overall personal finance habits.

Further, the survey found many in this age bracket rely on financial institutions and family members when seeking financial advice. 49 percent said they see their parents as primary influencers in shaping their banking and financial views. Meanwhile, 40 percent say they still turn to parents and family members as a source of information. Interestingly, 54 percent of responding millennials are going in to their bank branch for information, while 62 percent are going online.

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While 59 percent of millennials reported that they are "extremely" or "very" knowledgeable about their day-to-day banking products like checking accounts, they still want advice on personal finance topics, such as savings, creating a budget or credit cards.

In addition, few of the respondents claim to have had formal financial education training, such as a class at school, a seminar at a local bank or online courses, while 69 percent reported they had received no financial education lessons at all.

Ninety percent of survey respondents said they use online or mobile tools for their everyday banking activities, such as checking balances or paying bills, and 57 percent said they are using mobile banking more frequently than they were last year.

Those polled also said they check their balance and banking activities daily (35 percent) or weekly (53 percent). While checking their balance is the most popular activity online, the survey found that they are still visiting bank branches as frequently as they did last year, mostly to deposit or withdraw money. Those who do their banking in a branch feel it is more secure and enjoy the in-person service, the survey found.

Bryan Yurcan is associate editor for Bank Systems and Technology. He has worked in various editorial capacities for newspapers and magazines for the past 8 years. After beginning his career as a municipal and courts reporter for daily newspapers in upstate New York, Bryan has ... View Full Bio