Bank fees: plenty of complaints, few goodbyes
They find their bank too expensive, and they stay anyway.
For the first wave of the nabel financial services tracker, we talked with 274 people who run their household’s finances, all of them in a voice conversation with the nabel agent.
Get the full report30 pages, in French
274voice conversations
16 minmedian length
5 daysof fieldwork
Unhappy with the price, and staying anyway.
86%
won’t switch their main bank in the next twelve months, 70% definitely not. The same goes for 83% of those who find their fees too high.
[…] I’d find it complicated to change banks […]. I’m a bit afraid of not getting my salary, with the change of bank, for example.
Man, 35–54, south-west France
54%
find their bank fees too high: 63% of traditional-bank customers, compared with 10% of those whose main bank is online.
Loyalty doesn’t pay. Loyalty doesn’t pay. I pay full price for my card, I pay full price for all the fees.
Woman, 55+, Île-de-France
37%
also bank somewhere else, often an online account used as a wallet. 82% keep a traditional bank as their main bank.
The online account is for small everyday purchases. It’s my little wallet.
Woman, 55+, north-west France
48%
would take advice from an AI as long as they stay in control: no payments, no decisions. 28% want no AI at all.
I’d accept it giving me advice, and I wouldn’t accept it touching my money.
Woman, 35–54, Île-de-France
274 conversations, one bubble each.
Click a red bubble to hear or read what that person said.Tap a red bubble to hear or read what that person said.
Why they stay, and what would make them leave
The full report goes further. 30 pages, in French:
- 01Six findings on loyalty, fees, fraud, online banks, money worries and AI
- 02Three customers’ stories, in their own words, transcribed verbatim
- 03Three opportunities for traditional banks, online banks and neobanks, and AI projects in banking and insurance
- 04The conversation guide and the full methodology
Methodology · Mainland France · 11–16 Sept 2026
274 respondents who hold a bank account in their own name and make their household’s financial decisions. 204 complete voice conversations with the nabel agent, plus 70 partial ones whose completed answers were kept.
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