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Top five US bank-holding companies — applied AI investment, FY-2025 → FY-2027

Peer benchmarking analysis
01 · At a glance
The top five US bank-holding companies' applied AI program scales from ~$1.00B in FY-2025 to ~$2.45B by FY-2027 — a +145% step over two years.
02 · Top five US bank-holding companies — applied AI program
Top five US bank-holding companies — FY-26 applied AI per firm
FY-26 applied AI per firm · software/tools/vendors, FTEs, and contingents · sorted by magnitude
Bank A FY-26 applied AI: ~$600M ~$600M Bank A Bank B FY-26 applied AI: ~$450M ~$450M Bank B Bank C FY-26 applied AI: ~$400M ~$400M Bank C Bank D FY-26 applied AI: ~$300M ~$300M Bank D Bank E FY-26 applied AI: ~$200M ~$200M Bank E COHORT MEDIAN · ~$400M $0M$400M$800M FY-26 applied AI spend ($)
Per-firm forecast — applied AI by year
3 bars per firm: FY-25 measured, FY-26 ratio step-up, FY-27 forward projection (+25% YoY trend)
Bank A Bank A FY-25: ~$300M ~$300M FY-25 Bank A FY-26: ~$600M ~$600M FY-26 Bank A FY-27: ~$750M ~$750M FY-27 Bank B Bank B FY-25: ~$250M ~$250M FY-25 Bank B FY-26: ~$450M ~$450M FY-26 Bank B FY-27: ~$550M ~$550M FY-27 Bank C Bank C FY-25: ~$200M ~$200M FY-25 Bank C FY-26: ~$400M ~$400M FY-26 Bank C FY-27: ~$500M ~$500M FY-27 Bank D Bank D FY-25: ~$150M ~$150M FY-25 Bank D FY-26: ~$300M ~$300M FY-26 Bank D FY-27: ~$400M ~$400M FY-27 Bank E Bank E FY-25: ~$100M ~$100M FY-25 Bank E FY-26: ~$200M ~$200M FY-26 Bank E FY-27: ~$250M ~$250M FY-27 $0M$500M$1.0B Applied AI spend per year ($)
FY-25 (conservative) FY-26 (bull · step-up) FY-27 (forward projection · +25% YoY)
03 · Sia's read — top-5 cohort AI investment
Sia's read

The cohort is committing materially more to applied AI year-over-year. The step from FY-25 to FY-26 (+96%) reflects a one-time ratio inflection — LLM contract ramp and foundational AI labor allocation hitting in a single year. FY-27 trends at +25%, a more sustainable forward pace.

Dispersion within the cohort is wider than tech-opex scale alone would predict. Bank A leads at ~$600M FY-26 (publicly anchored to the largest US bank's disclosed AI program); Bank E sits at ~$200M — a 3.3× spread across the five firms. Cohort median is ~$400M. Competitive intent differs more than balance sheets do.

This is the cost base every firm in or adjacent to the cohort is operating against. For firms with similar tech-opex scale, the question is posture: tracking with the median, leaning in toward the top, or making a deliberate selective-build call below the cohort range. Each posture is defensible — but the cohort is no longer a wait-and-see market.

04 · Methodology
Methodology

Scope (every figure): applied AI spend — software/tools/vendors, FTEs, and contingents. FY-25 measured, FY-26 forecast from Q1-26 actuals, FY-27 forward projection at +25% YoY trend. Cumulative over the three years.

All five firms
Cohort = the five largest US bank-holding companies by FY-25 reported technology & communications expense. Anonymized as Bank A through Bank E. For each: applied AI = (tech & comms expense × software/tools/vendors ratio) + (compensation & benefits × FTE ratio) + (professional services × contingent ratio), with ratios drawn from Sia's proprietary AI intensity library.

Line items reflect each firm's own income-statement labels as reported in its FY-25 10-K. Naming and scope of comparable lines can vary across filers.