AI Agents Could Wake Up $1.6 Trillion in Dormant Bank Deposits

$1.6 Trillion in Idle Deposits

According to the Financial Times, JPMorgan, Bank of America and Wells Fargo together hold about $1.6 trillion in non-interest-bearing deposits. These funds typically sit idle for long periods because moving them is time-consuming. In a September 27 report, Apollo Global Management chief economist Torsten Sløk noted that if every household used an AI agent to optimize cash yields, banks could lose a large share of their low-cost deposits. The national average interest rate on checking accounts is currently just 0.1%, while high-yield accounts offer rates between 3.3% and 5%.

AI Assistants Move Into Cash Management

Meta launched its AI assistant Muse on September 8. It connects to bank accounts through Plaid and can share information such as balances, transactions and investment holdings. Plaid's announcement did not say whether Muse can move funds between banks. A PYMNTS Intelligence survey found that among heavy AI users, 37% rely on AI as their primary tool for managing money.

Banks Already Testing Automation

JPMorgan's Smart Cash tool has already experimented with automatically moving client funds between checking accounts and higher-yield brokerage products. McKinsey research found that most consumers pay little attention to deposit rates and lack the time and tools to hunt for better ones.

Source: https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2026/ai-agents-wake-up-1-6-trillion-in-sleepy-bank-deposits/