In today’s competitive banking environment, retaining deposits isn’t just a goal—it’s a necessity. With rates fluctuating and consumers increasingly seeking higher returns, financial institutions must do more than react. They need to anticipate.
The challenge? Traditional methods of deposit strategy—looking at historical balances or applying broad rate changes—don’t account for how customers are actually behaving in real time. Without understanding when and why funds are likely to move, financial institutions risk losing valuable deposits without warning.
But what if the signs were already there?
The Hidden Signals in Everyday Money Movement
For most consumers and businesses, daily financial activity flows through their primary checking accounts—and most of that movement happens via ACH.
ACH credits and debits reveal a wide range of financial behaviors:
- Income from payroll or benefits
- Bill payments and loan repayments
- Transfers to investment accounts
- Shifts to higher-rate savings elsewhere
When analyzed properly, these transactions offer a clear, ongoing signal of a customer’s financial intent. Yet many financial institutions are still only scratching the surface of what this data can reveal.
From Guesswork to Insight: Understanding Transfer Behavior
One of the most impactful insights to emerge from transaction data is the identification of customer transfer patterns—specifically, how likely a customer is to move funds to another bank or investment platform.
Analysis consistently shows that a small segment of customers—often fewer than 20%—drive the majority of all external transfer activity. These are the customers most likely to shop rates, chase yields, or reallocate funds across institutions. Knowing who they are, and when they’re likely to act, can transform how banks and credit unions approach deposit pricing and retention.
By segmenting customers into behavioral groups—such as:
- Those who never transfer funds
- Those who transfer occasionally
- And those who consistently move funds in and out
—financial institutions can allocate resources more effectively, avoid overpricing for rate-insensitive customers, and focus retention efforts where they’ll have the greatest impact
It’s Not Just About the What—It’s About the Where
ACH data doesn’t just tell you that funds are moving—it can also tell you where they’re going.
This level of granularity helps uncover whether customers are moving money to:
- High-yield digital banks
- National institutions
- Local credit unions or regional players
Understanding the destination helps institutions identify competitive threats, spot emerging deposit flight trends, and tailor their offers or messaging in response.
Putting It All Together: A Smarter Deposit Strategy
The key to stronger deposit performance isn’t just offering higher rates. It’s about aligning pricing and communication with real-time customer behavior.
Predictive analytics, powered by transaction-level insights, enable institutions to:
- Anticipate deposit outflows
- Tailor rate offers to high-risk customers
- Identify behavioral triggers for outreach
- Benchmark transfer destinations to refine competitive positioning
Turning Insight Into Action
At IFM, we’ve seen how transforming raw ACH data into behavioral intelligence can change the game for deposit strategy. Our CandelaTM solution helps institutions normalize and categorize ACH transactions in near real time, enabling clearer visibility into money movement.
And our Transfer Risk Indicator (TRIScoreTM) helps predict which customers are likely to move funds in the next 90 days—providing an actionable layer of insight for targeted pricing and retention.
But regardless of the tools used, the shift that matters most is moving from reaction to prediction.
Your customers are giving you the signals. It’s time to start listening.
Contact us today to learn how IFM’s cutting-edge customer insights and solutions can help you strengthen customer relationships and drive long-term retention.
Rob Reale is an Associate Partner and National Sales Manager responsible for business development and sales at Insight Financial Marketing. Rob began working in the Mortgage Banking industry in 1990 and currently helps the financial service industry leverage unique and innovative solutions.
