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Published: May 13, 2026
Just last month, EPAM released its 2026 Consumer Banking Report – packed with fresh insights and key findings that are shaping the future of finance. In this blog, crafted by Mark Gahan, Michael McBride, and Chris Proby, we explore how First Derivative unpacks these trends to drive real change and identify actionable takeaways. Dive in as we spotlight FD’s Operational Execution Insight: Delivering Customer Experience, AI Adoption, Digital Scale, Security & Modernisation.Shape
EPAM’s 2026 Consumer Banking Report highlights a market where customer satisfaction remains high but uneven. Digital expectations keep accelerating, and half of consumers are now comfortable acting on AI-driven guidance, raising the bar for fast, fair, and secure operations. Our insight translates these signals into execution: how First Derivative’s Operational Execution turns CX, AI, financial crime, digital scale, and legacy modernisation priorities into measurable outcomes, safely and at speed.
In 2026, banks face a convergence of rising customer expectations, tightening regulatory scrutiny, and mounting pressure to modernise ageing operational environments. Traditional operating models can no longer keep pace. To compete, organisations need more than strategy; they need disciplined, scalable execution.
This is where First Derivative’s Operational Execution capability becomes essential, acting as the linchpin that connects vision to real-world operational outcomes. FD’s approach, grounded in people, data, and technology, ensures that banks execute with precision, comply with increasing obligations, and accelerate the pace of change across customer experience, AI-enabled processes, digital banking, security, and legacy remediation.
50% of consumers now trust AI-driven banking guidance
Customer satisfaction is high—but not everywhere
Digital expectations are rising faster than ever
FD turns strategy into real, measurable outcomes
Real-time feedback and complaint handling build customer trust
AI automation slashes cycle times and error rates
Digital banks scale safely with FD’s disciplined execution
Smarter, less intrusive security controls boost trust and reduce friction
Legacy systems transformed for efficiency and growth
FD delivers consistent, transparent experiences and future-ready operations
Customer satisfaction is now a strategic differentiator, especially in a landscape where switching costs are low and reputational feedback moves quickly. FD’s Operational Execution transforms operations into a trust engine, embedding real-time CX feedback loops and strengthening complaint handling so banks can deliver faster, fairer outcomes.
FD deploys structured delivery frameworks and scalable operational teams to ensure consistency, transparency, and governance across high-volume customer processes. This turns regulatory expectations such as Consumer Duty into operational disciplines executed reliably at scale, aligning with FD’s mission to transform strategy into coordinated, cross-functional execution.
As banks face increasing compliance demands and more complex data landscapes, intelligent automation is no longer optional. FD specialises in executing AI-enhanced operational processes, automating high-volume activities such as KYC, AML, fraud review, and document intake, all while maintaining strong governance and human-in-the-loop oversight.
FD’s deep financial services expertise enables clients to embed AI responsibly within operational flows, reducing cycle times, lowering error rates, and improving risk outcomes. This reflects FD’s broader mandate to unlock the value of insight, hindsight, and foresight, and use it to drive real operational change.
Digital-first banks face a unique challenge: explosive growth combined with intense regulatory scrutiny. FD’s Operational Execution ensures digital banks scale safely and sustainably by delivering:
Regulatory uplift teams for financial crime and compliance
Operational readiness for new features and migrations
Structured PMO, governance and risk reporting
Data quality remediation and continuous improvement
This fits with FD’s positioning as a delivery partner that supports clients across the full spectrum of transformation, from planning to implementation, helping them navigate the data-driven, digital revolution transforming the financial sector.
As fraud grows in complexity and customers demand minimal friction, security execution becomes a decisive competitive factor. FD’s Operational Execution enhances fraud operations, testing, controls, and incident response processes, ensuring these capabilities run effectively across entire operational estates.
FD’s ability to integrate modern tooling, analytics, and behavioural intelligence ensures banks deploy smarter, less intrusive controls that strengthen customer trust without slowing journeys. This contributes to FD’s broader mission of enabling organisations to manage risk more effectively through technology-driven operational delivery.
Legacy systems continue to be one of the most significant blockers to operational performance and innovation. FD’s Operational Execution provides the structure, governance, and scalable delivery capability needed to manage system migrations, data remediation, testing, UAT support, and cutover management.
By combining technology engineering with operational discipline, FD helps financial institutions safely transition from high-risk, high-cost legacy platforms towards modern architectures, unlocking efficiency and freeing investment for future growth. FD’s role as a delivery-focused consultancy ensures that complex transformation becomes executable, measurable, and resilient.
FD enables banks to adopt a holistic operating model where customer centricity, AI, security, data quality, and modern technology platforms reinforce one another. FD’s operational execution ensures that transformation is not just designed, it is delivered.
The result for clients:
More trusted customer experiences, delivered consistently and transparently
Lower operational cost and risk, through automation and disciplined controls
Greater digital scalability and resilience, driven by modern platforms and clean data
A future-ready operations function, aligned with regulatory expectations and market change
This is why FD positions Operational Execution as the essential connector between strategic ambition and real organisational performance.
The future belongs to banks that execute brilliantly. Integrating AI, modernising core operations, and strengthening customer trust all depend on operational excellence and FD’s Operational Execution practice is designed to deliver exactly that.
If you’re ready to turn operational challenges into measurable outcomes, FD will help you build the roadmap and execute it with discipline, speed and impact.
