Banks are preparing for a significant uplift in artificial intelligence investment as they look ahead to 2026, with compliance and risk functions emerging as a key focus.
According to new research conducted by Hawk and Chartis, the vast majority of banking compliance and risk leaders expect AI budgets to rise sharply over the next two to three years,.
The findings are detailed in the report AI in Financial Crime and Compliance: Charting the Path from Pilot to Maturity, which analyses how banks are moving beyond experimentation and into more mature, enterprise-wide deployment of AI.
Overall investment sentiment is notably strong. Globally, 82% of banking compliance and risk leaders surveyed expect their AI investment to grow by more than 25% over the next two to three years. A further 10% anticipate growth of up to 25%, suggesting that only a small minority are taking a cautious stance. Just 3% expect no growth at all, while only 4% believe their AI budgets will decline.
Generative AI is emerging as a particularly important area of focus, although banks appear divided on the pace of expansion.
The research shows that 46% of compliance and risk leaders expect their generative AI investment to increase by more than 25%. At the same time, an equal proportion plan to increase investment by less than 25%. Only a small number expect no change or a reduction in spending.
Agentic AI, which involves systems capable of taking autonomous actions within defined parameters, is attracting growing attention but remains at an earlier stage of adoption. Most banks expect incremental rather than dramatic increases in this area, with 71% predicting investment growth of up to 25%. A smaller group, 14%, foresee larger increases of more than 25%, while the remainder expect either no change or a modest reduction.
For more insights into the growth of AI, download the reports here. There are two editions to the report: Banking and Payment & FinTech.
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