The news: Truist has added a direct deposit switching tool to its consumer digital account opening flow using technology from Atomic.

The feature lets customers move their payroll deposits from another financial institution (FI) to Truist during onboarding. Since launching the capability in August, 19% of applicants who engaged with the tool completed a switch.

The bigger picture:

• Truist’s tool is part of a trend of banks making onboarding enhancements. In our recent report North America Digital Account Opening Forecast 2026, we discuss how a rebound in US digital account openings is tied to both post-pandemic normalization and more effective onboarding, which has meant more completed applications. Traditional banks’ scale and deeper relationships with customers offer massive advantages over neobanks, whose digital account openings continue to lag.
• The direct deposit switching tool bolsters Truist’s already strong digital offerings. The bank placed first in our US Mobile Banking Emerging Features Benchmark 2025, narrowly beating U.S. Bank and Bank of America. However, Truist’s lack of a mobile direct deposit setup tool relegated it to second place (tied with Wells Fargo) in the Transfers category.

Our take: Creating a direct-deposit relationship is a well-worn path to primary FI status. It positions FIs to retain customers and cross-sell higher-value, advice-driven products. FIs that transform direct-deposit switching from a paper-based process to a few clicks will find that customers are immediately stickier.