Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have gained a lot of traction in the past few years. Even though Bitcoin has been around since 2009, its mainstream adoption started to gather steam only during the last 3-4 years. While one side of the argument states that its notoriety due to increased usage on darknet marketplaces to be the reason, the answer may lie somewhere else.
A recent survey conducted by Facebook IQ has shown that a majority of the millennials (individuals between the age group of 18 and 34) do not have faith in the conventional banking system. The report published by the world’s leading social network states that about 95 % of millennials are not satisfied with the way banks are treating them. This is mainly due to the credit-driven economic practices where the financial institutions are more driven towards keeping the customers in debt, instead of offering sound financial guidance.
The opinion of millennials means a lot, especially when it is this strong. Millennials currently comprise of a majority of the world’s working population. According to the report, millennials who stand to inherit over $30 trillion from their parents have found financial guidance from sources other than formal financial institutions to be more reliable. Except for the 5% of the millennial population, the rest believes that the financial institutions do not understand their needs. Also, the global economic slowdown resulting from the greed and mismanagement by the financial institutions had a negative impact on many millennials during the crucial period of their life and career.
The increased technology awareness and innovative nature of the millennials have led them to explore alternative financial products and services including Bitcoin. As they continue to shape the future of fintech both as creators and consumers, the banking and financial sectors have a tough road ahead. Unless these institutions overhaul their business model and product offering, they may end up losing customers en masse.
The gradual shift in the technology from legacy systems to blockchain technology is just a small step towards creating a millennial-friendly banking ecosystem. Financial institutions have to evolve if they want to sustain their profit margins by retaining existing customers and gaining new ones. Hope they wake and make the necessary changes before it is too late.
Read the full report here.
Ref: Facebook IQ | Financeography |Image: NewsBTC
