NEW YORK — Artificial intelligence patent filings by banks have surged over the past decade, but the activity remains heavily concentrated among a small group of large U.S. institutions, according to a report by Banking Exchange.
The report said Evident’s Banking AI Patent Tracker found that while AI patent filings by major banks grew at a compound annual growth rate of 78% over the last 10 years, just three U.S. banks — Capital One, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase — accounted for 75% of all banking-related AI patents filed globally.
The report noted the dominance of U.S. banks extends across the broader rankings. The top 10 banking AI patent filers are all based in North America: Capital One, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, TD Bank, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, U.S. Bank, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and PNC. Overall, U.S. banks are responsible for more than 85% of AI patents filed worldwide by the banking sector, the report said.
Reasons for Concentration
Evident attributed the concentration to more permissive U.S. patent rules, a highly litigious intellectual property environment and more structured internal innovation programs at large American banks.
According to Evident, while most banking AI patents continue to focus on traditional techniques, filings tied to generative AI are rising sharply. GenAI-related patents increased from 6% of all banking AI filings to 17% in 2023, with early indications of continued growth into 2025.
That trend mirrors findings from Evident’s AI Use Case Tracker, which shows more than half of new AI use cases disclosed by banks since 2024 have involved generative AI, the company stated.
Customer Service Leads the Way
According to the report, customer service is the leading area for GenAI patents, driven by investments in chatbots and personalization tools. Cybersecurity and back-office functions also feature prominently, while relatively few patents focus on training or financial risk management.
Agentic AI remains nascent, with only eight banks globally filing patents in the area. European banks continue to trail their U.S. counterparts, though HSBC stands out for filing patents across multiple jurisdictions to protect key markets, the report said.
