Major US Banks Restrict Unvetted AI Agents Accessing Customer Accounts
Morgan Stanley and other US banks are blocking unauthorized AI agent access to customer accounts amid liability concerns.
According to TechRadar citing Axios, several major US banks including Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup have detected third-party AI agents accessing their customers' bank accounts and have begun restricting such unvetted access. Wells Fargo is also reported to be responding to potential threats.
The issue stems from an increasing number of customers voluntarily providing their banking usernames and passwords to AI assistants to delegate certain workflows. However, this user-authorized activity often violates bank policies that require the customer themselves to log in, making it difficult for banks to distinguish between legitimate human activity, authorized AI operations, and rogue agents.
Charles Schwab CEO Richard Wurster stated that he now expects a daily report on "how many times we've had to block one of the different agents" to ensure the bank maintains "control over authentication and the experience." Beyond visibility and account security, banks are also concerned about financial liability, as it remains unclear who is responsible if an AI agent's actions go wrong.