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Citi and Bank of America restrict AI agents' access to customer accounts

For the head of digital banking at a regional bank

Citigroup and Bank of America have restricted AI agents' access to customer accounts over concerns that autonomous assistants could move depositors' funds into higher-yield products, the Financial Times reported, as relayed by Incrypted on Oct. 18.1

The concern is that AI agents could move low-cost deposits, which banks use for lending, into higher-yield accounts, according to Incrypted's account of the FT report.1 Incrypted said the debate intensified after Meta launched its personal AI assistant Muse in September, and that tech companies are building personal finance tools that can move money between accounts to optimize yield.1

Citigroup said it does not allow third-party AI agents or assistants to log into customer accounts or independently carry out transactions in its digital banking services, citing protection of accounts and personal data; customers can still give certain open banking services limited, read-only access to account information.1

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said the bank is working with developers of agentic systems on rules that define liability for AI-initiated payments, and said: "We strongly believe there should be a human in the loop to authorise money moving out of your account."1

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said during a discussion of quarterly results that the bank will restrict third-party AI agents' access to customer accounts while it builds its own protective tools.1

Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok estimated that agents could move savings into accounts paying 3.3–5%, versus an average US checking yield of 0.1%; Incrypted reported that servicing the $1.6 trillion in non-interest-bearing deposits at JPMorgan, Bank of America and Wells Fargo at 3% would add roughly $47 billion a year in costs, nearly half their combined annual profit.1

Why it matters

Banks are setting access rules for AI agents before liability and authorization standards exist, so fintechs building agent-based products face blocked logins at the largest banks. Read-only open banking access remains open, which lets outside services keep comparing rates even where transfers are blocked, and banks may need to compete harder on deposit pricing and retention.

What’s next

Incrypted reported that banking industry representatives approached Federal Reserve regulators in October 2026, and that regulators want clearer legal rules on authorizing transactions by autonomous systems and on liability for errors; no date for any decision was given.1

From the brief

Our take. JPMorgan and Citi keep outside AI agents off the login page. Choose now whether you block, partner or build, before an agent that gets in elsewhere moves your 0.1% deposits to 3.3–5%.

Action. Digital banking: Inventory which aggregators and agents hold read-only or credential access to customer accounts, and set a block, partner or build policy.

What our records say

Bank of America's AI strategy is described as extending one assistant, Erica, step by step rather than a big-bang rollout, with CEO Brian Moynihan naming accuracy as the constraint.1 Its strategy is the opposite of a big-bang rollout: a decade of one assistant, Erica, extended step by step into employees' tools, treasury products and advisor workflows, funded by a $13 billion technology budget of which $4 billion goes to new capabilities.1

  1. BofA: AI programme summary (part 1)

From our records

Sources

  1. ReportCiti and Bank of America restrict AI agents' access to customer accounts Incrypted