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As deposit growth continues to be a primary challenge in 2026, FIs may need to look beyond the liability side of the balance sheet for relief. That’s because compared with the rising cost of acquiring deposits, deepening existing customer relationships often makes more economic sense. One way to do so? Unsecured lending. Though it may make some banking executives uneasy, it can actually be a strategically sound second account after checking.
Of any consumer lending product, an unsecured loan is the fastest to underwrite and easiest to fund. And it contributes more to the overall relationship than other consumer lending options. Auto loans, for example, are largely indirect, with dealers owning the customer experience, which makes recapture difficult. Credit cards remain dominated by national issuers with scaled rewards economics.
Debt consolidation via an unsecured personal loan, on the other hand, presents a uniquely strong opportunity as consumer debt rises. It can save customers meaningful interest expense while strengthening their bond with the institution.
To capitalize, top performing lenders in 2026 are reinventing unsecured lending by moving away from rigid pricing bands and embracing data-driven segmentation. It allows them to meet the expectations of superprime and primeplus borrowers while optimizing margins and managing risk in a volatile rate environment. This drives profitability (see chart) while at the same time advancing the customer-bank relationship.
Super Prime* Unsecured Personal Lending Profitability
*Super Prime: Borrowers with credit scores over 780
To help maximize the effectiveness of unsecured lending, tools such as the LendersBenchmark Analyzer can help. They provide the market intelligence banks need to evaluate performance, identify opportunity zones and grow unsecured portfolios responsibly.
