First Internet Bank has enabled business and personal customers to link account data to AI assistants ChatGPT and Claude via a permission-based connection.
The US-based bank has introduced a facility allowing customers to query their own account activity in natural language through third-party AI assistants, rather than relying on manual spreadsheet analysis or dedicated planning tools. The service applies to both business and personal checking, savings, and money market accounts held with the bank.
How the connection works
The capability is built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP), an open standard that allows AI assistants to interact with external data sources under defined permissions. Through this protocol, First Internet Bank has established a read-only link between supported AI assistants, specifically OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude, and a customer's banking data.
Customers decide which account information is shared with the AI assistant and retain the ability to amend or revoke that access at any time. The bank has stated that the connection does not allow AI assistants to move funds, initiate transactions, or alter account settings; the access is limited strictly to reviewing authorised account information. Customer banking data is not used to train the underlying AI models, according to the bank.
Use cases for business and personal customers
For business customers, the tool is designed to support queries such as whether current cash on hand is sufficient to meet upcoming payroll obligations, which vendors account for the largest share of spend, or how cash flow has trended over a recent period. Personal banking customers can use the same conversational approach to review discretionary spending in specific categories, identify recurring subscription payments, or track savings progress over the course of a year.
The design intent, as described by the bank, is to shift financial analysis away from static account statements and manual review processes and towards a conversational format that draws directly on a customer's own transaction history.
Context and positioning
David Becker, chairman and chief executive officer of First Internet Bank, said that sophisticated financial analysis had historically been the preserve of organisations with dedicated financial planning and analysis functions. He said the new capability was intended to extend that type of analysis to individual businesses and consumers using their existing account data, without requiring separate financial planning resources.
The move reflects a broader trend among US banks and fintechs to integrate large language model-based assistants with account infrastructure via standardised protocols such as MCP, which has emerged as a common method for connecting AI systems to external applications and data sets under controlled, permissioned access. First Internet Bank has positioned security and customer control as central features of the rollout, emphasising that access is opt-in, adjustable, and limited to read-only account review rather than transactional capability.
