With inflation levels in most developed markets moving back toward target levels and interest rates plateauing, IT spending by retail banks proved more resilient than expected at the start of 2023, when the US market in particular was suffering from turbulence due to increasing interest rates. Actual 2023 growth in both North America and Europe was stronger than expected, although conversely weaker growth in Asia-Pacific meant global spending was in line with expectations, reaching $261 billion. The global budget outlook for 2024 is also in line with previous forecasts, with banks set to reach $273 billion in IT spending in 2024.
Driven by North America and, to an extent, the European region, the outlook for both 2025 and 2026 has got stronger than previously expected. Global IT spending is set to grow 5.6% both years, driven by mandatory requirements and a drive for greater agility to support improved customer experience and product innovation. Conversely, Asia-Pacific and Middle East African regions are set to be below long-term trend (driven by relative weakness in China). North America and Europe will remain the largest spending regions.
Leveraging primary insight from Celent's Dimension Program, this report presents the outlook for technology spending by retail banks up to 2029, highlighting key findings from Celent's Dimensions IT Spending Forecast Model 2024. The scope covered is IT spending by service domain, looking at how retail banks are allocating spend across the front, middle, and back other, including areas such as account management, operations, digital channels, marketing, and risk. The report analyses at global and regional trends.
