A New Framework For Financial Wellness: Personalization And Optionality Meet Security In The Age Of AI

By Mallory Gafas
As AI and tech innovation drive a democratization of financial services, consumers can increasingly operate like shoppers in a retail marketplace: They can choose from a vast array of products and services, individualized to their unique wants and needs.
Those rising expectations of optionality and personalization offer clear value for a broad base of financial consumers that, recent research reveals, have highly varied interests, plans and motivators. The Forbes 2025 Mass Affluent Survey of U.S.-based individuals with $200,000 to $2 million in investable assets finds that their top financial goals range from maintaining their current lifestyle (67%) to growing their investment portfolio (55%) to asset protection (53%).
“People’s expectations of their financial lives are shifting,” explains Tim Hong, global head of financial wellness technology at Gen Digital, a multinational software and cybersecurity firm. “They want authentic, personalized, and holistic guidance — not just point or transactional solutions. It’s no longer only about accessing products, but about experiences that provide choice, personalization and security as more financial activity moves online.”
To serve these diverse consumer preferences and demands for personalization, optionality and advice, financial institutions are innovating with rapid technological advancements. Another recent Forbes survey reveals that 71% of C-suite leaders in financial services say that AI will revolutionize the sector in the near future through applications such as personalized product recommendations and financial advice, real-time fraud prevention and more accurate product and investment predictions, and nearly four-in-ten (39%) cite AI as a top growth opportunity.
However, the same AI which executives are leveraging to improve everything from back-end operations to the customer experience is also introducing critical new vulnerabilities. After all, for AI to be effective, it requires vast amounts of consumer data channeled through new and different digital channels. Forbes research from three recent surveys collectively points to an emerging industry imperative: Financial services firms personalizing offerings with AI must consider the implications of doing so without a robust security posture.
A strategic framework that innovatively combines personalized advice and product optionality with advanced protection can help institutions redefine financial wellness now, and in the future.
Why Optionality And Personalization Are Driving Democratization, And Vice-Versa
The pursuit of financial wellness is a two-way street: Product optionality offered by a financial institution does not always translate to the options for which a specific consumer is eligible. Personalized, flexible and dynamic financial wellness, therefore, involves empowering consumers to improve their eligibility over time.
Forbes research uncovered a preference for personalized advice among mass affluent consumers: 83% of respondents to a 2025 survey said that customer service is important when choosing financial institutions. The same survey also revealed a diverse and varied range of financial goals, preferences and plans.
For example, while most mass affluent hold traditional investments like stocks and bonds, they’re split on alternatives – with 43% interested in, and 38% not interested in – exploring other investment opportunities like real estate investment trusts, cryptocurrency, commodities, private equity or venture capital funds. This split highlights a growing need for financial platforms that can cater to a wide spectrum of risk appetites and goals.
Financial services leaders are taking note: According to the inaugural 2025 Forbes Research Enterprise Technology Purchasing Survey of 1,000 IT decision makers, 79% of those in the financial services industry agree that evolving customer expectations and preferences will impact their technology plans over the next five years, and 38% say improved customer experience or satisfaction metrics is a required justification for making new technology acquisitions.
In a separate study, 64% of C-suite leaders in the financial services sector said they are using or plan to use AI to enhance customer experiences by personalizing interactions or generating tailored recommendations, according to the Forbes Research CxO Growth 5.0 Survey.
AI Adoption: Solving The Security Paradox
While financial services executives may be leaning into AI to meet consumer demand, they are also keenly aware of its accompanying risks to data privacy.
Forbes research finds that 72% of financial services executives say data privacy and security is a main challenge they anticipate when adopting AI across their organization. That figure is substantially higher than the study average of 43% for all industries and the 33% cited by retail executives, underscoring the unique pressures facing financial institutions.
These concerns are amplified by the rising sophistication of cyberthreats. Gen Digital’s Q2 2025 Threat Report noted a 340% surge in financial scams, and found that 16 billion leaked credentials are still in circulation, putting consumers at constant risk. Furthermore, 64% of financial services executives say AI exacerbates the challenge of ensuring their cybersecurity measures are up to date, a higher percentage than the overall average of 51%.
Meanwhile, a disconnect may be emerging between executive concern and consumer assumption:
Forbes research reveals that more than half (56%) of U.S.-based consumers with $200,000 to $2 million in investable assets feel confident in their financial institution’s cybersecurity and fraud protection.
But 72% of Financial Services CxOs say data privacy and security is a main challenge they anticipate when trying to adopt AI across different functions of their organization to become an AI-driven enterprise, Forbes research also finds.
The divergent data could indicate a growing trust gap that must be bridged for AI to reach its full potential in financial services.
“AI is fostering the convergence of protection and personalization — integrating richer data with trusted technologies to shape experiences that are secure, contextual and empowering based on customers’ permission,” says Travis Witteveen, head of trust-based solutions at Gen Digital. “In this way, we can support people in growing, managing, and safeguarding their digital and financial lives in today’s interconnected world.”
A New Trust Model, A New Value Proposition
As Vincent Pilette, CEO of Gen Digital explains, to provide consumers with the personalization, optionality and advanced protection they expect, financial institutions must consider a new model in which fintech innovation and cybersecurity aren’t separate functions, but deeply integrated components of a single, trustworthy platform.
“Consumers want a financial wellness platform that gives them confidence — where every decision and transaction feels secure, permitted and contextual,” says Pilette. “The next generation of finance is about delivering exactly that: secure financial wellness.”
This approach addresses the core challenges facing the industry. By embedding advanced security directly into a diverse financial marketplace, institutions can:
Preserve Consumer Trust: Proactively addressing executive concerns about AI-related data privacy can preserve consumer trust in their financial institutions and offer assurance that their information is protected.
Meet Diverse Needs For Optionality And Advice: Offering a wide array of tools—from budgeting apps to platforms for managing credit scores allows institutions to cater to varied financial goals.
Drive Secure AI Innovation: By creating a secure environment, financial firms can more confidently deploy AI to enhance personalization and improve the customer experience, knowing that protections are built-in from the start.
Leveraging a dynamic personalized digital banking platform combined with a robust framework for data protection and privacy can help financial institutions seize the opportunities of AI to offer more diverse and varied options for services and offerings to consumers – all while managing risk – to reimagine financial wellness with trusted, tailored experiences.