Population over 59 years old starts to access digital services and reduce presence in bank branches, shows research

Habit changes

Research shows that only 25% of the Baby Boomer generation (people over 59 years old) maintain the habit of going to a bank branch to move their account

New technologies have impacted all generations of consumers, and one result of this digital transformation is the acceleration of changes in habits regarding finances. Research by Serasa shows that only 25% of the Baby Boomer generation (people over 59 years of age) maintain the habit of going to a bank branch to operate their account, with almost 80% of this public already accessing it through a cell phone application.

These findings are in the unprecedented survey by Serasa that shows how the different generations (X, Y, Z and Baby Boomers) relate to their finances. The search starts the series of events “Serasa Behavior”which will publish monthly studies showing different scenarios involving Brazilians’ relationship with money.

“Gathering this information is essential for us to understand how people deal with their finances in a rapidly changing market. This is just the first chapter of this initiative that will make a great contribution to the financial education of Brazilians”,

says Matheus Moura, director of Serasa.

digitization of finance

Pix, launched less than three years ago, is already the most used means of payment among different age groups of consumers. The credit card comes second in daily use among Generations Z, Y, and X, although for older people, the debit card trumps credit.

The custom of withdrawing money slows down among all generations, being lower among generation Z (18 to 28 years old) and Y (29 to 41 years old), 44% and 43% of them, respectively, do not have this habit to carry out their purchases and other financial transactions. Already 64% of the elderly still tend to withdraw money at least once a month.

A piece of information that is surprising in the midst of society’s digital transformation is that traditional notebooks were cited as the most common means of recording spending across all age groups. Among the younger generations, Z and Y, only 21% and 15%, respectively, use finance appsrevealing another interesting fact: for these consumers, the main reasons why they don’t use it is because they don’t feel safe or don’t know that this option exists or don’t know how to use it.

in relation to most consumed topics about finance in the last 12 months, “Investment”, “Extra income” and “Financial education” lead among the youngest. For the Baby Boomers, the subjects of most interest are “Economic scenario” and “Debts”. It is interesting to note that the topic “data security” is more sought after by older people and does not appear on the list of other younger generations.

Finance on social media

When it comes to financial education, the most used source of learning and consultation among generations X, Y and Z are social networks. But it is also worth mentioning the great participation in this learning of digital financial influencers and internet search engines.

When looking for information, the behavior among Baby Boomers is completely different, where websites and the bank application, in addition to friends and family, are the most recurrent when it comes to finding out about the subject.

The survey carried out by Serasa relied on the technical consultancy of the Opinion Box Institute and heard 4,486 people in the period from July 4th to 20th.

All insights and study summaries, as well as technical information from the survey, can be accessed at

About Serasa

With the purpose of revolutionizing access to credit in Brazil, Serasa offers a complete ecosystem aimed at improving the financial health of the population with digital products and services.

*With advisory information

Read more:

Serasa launches a new version of Score that allows the connection of bank information in the calculation

Serasa registers a 70% increase in the search for debt settlement

Serasa gives tips for using the Digital Wallet safely