Saxo survey: banks see AI robo-advisers as their biggest threat

Banks and brokers rank AI-driven robo-advisers and automated investment services as the biggest competitive threat they face, according to a Saxo study published on 6 October. Of 332 senior decision-makers surveyed, 48% picked AI, ahead of Big Tech firms moving into finance at 43% and neo-brokers with low or zero commissions at 36%.

Saxo commissioned the research from the market research firm Savanta. It covered commercial and investment banks, private banks, brokers, fintechs and challenger banks in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and Asia-Pacific, and ran in the summer of 2026 with 18 in-depth interviews on top of the survey.

Old systems, new products

Only 28% of respondents called their wealth and brokerage capabilities advanced, and 43% said fairly advanced. Their core wealth and brokerage technology is on average 6.7 years old, and 7.5 years at firms that run everything in-house.

The answers also contradict each other. Three in four respondents believe banks are well equipped to offer digital investing, yet 79% say banks launch new offerings without all the capabilities needed to support them.

“The challenge for many institutions is no longer recognising the need to modernise but modernising quickly enough to stay competitive.”

— Henrik Alsøe, Global Head of Institutional, Saxo Bank, Saxo

Quote source: Saxo, 6 October 2026.

Half of the respondents prefer a hybrid model for the long term: their own staff plus a single outside provider for digital wealth technology.

Who benefits from the answer

Saxo was founded in Copenhagen in 1992 and launched one of Europe’s first online trading platforms in 1998. Denmark’s financial regulator supervises it as a systemically important bank.

Saxo sells that service. Its institutional arm provides trading and investing technology to other banks and brokers, and a survey that sends banks to outside partners helps Saxo’s sales team. The release does not publish the full questionnaire or a country breakdown.

Brokers have started to offer what banks fear. Interactive Brokers lets an AI agent submit orders for eligible clients through its Autonomous Trading service, and Robinhood opened its app to AI agents in September.

Saxo itself is changing hands. Bank J. Safra Sarasin agreed in July to buy the remaining 28.69% from founder Kim Fournais, which will give it 100% of the Danish bank once regulators approve. If you hold an account at a bank that uses Saxo’s platform, nothing in this study changes your terms. Our Saxo profile lists the bank’s licences and how it compares with other brokers.

Based on Saxo’s press release of 6 October 2026, checked on 10 November. Saxo commissioned the survey and sells the outsourcing services it describes. Information only, not investment advice.