Bank CEO Utilized Voice Clone for Earnings Call Preceding Announcement of Partnership with OpenAI for Creation of Digital Workforce
Customers Bank Leverages AI to Automate Core Functions and Improve Efficiency
During a first-quarter earnings call, Customers Bank CEO Sam Sidhu revealed that his prepared remarks had been delivered by an AI clone of his voice. This unusual stunt was not just a demonstration, but a signal of the lender's broader transformation underway to rely increasingly on AI to automate core functions and improve efficiency.
As part of this effort, the $25.9 billion asset lender has announced a multiyear partnership with OpenAI. The AI startup will embed engineers within the bank to help automate lending, client onboarding, and payments. This partnership is reportedly part of Sidhu's strategy to get ahead of other banks in the industry's race to transform itself using AI agents as a new digital workforce.
| Bank | Loan Timeline (Days) | Account Opening Time (Minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| Customers Bank (current) | Up to 45 | Over a day |
| Customers Bank (projected) | Roughly 7 | Under 20 |
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The project aims to improve the bank's efficiency ratio from around 49% to the low 40s while also boosting returns from next year. Sidhu says that the relationship with OpenAI will be symbiotic, allowing the two companies to co-create enterprise AI solutions that OpenAI could potentially sell to other banks in the future.
The bank plans to roll out AI agents across its lending, deposits, and payment sectors over the next six to 12 months. These tools will function as always-on digital workers, capable of handling tasks continuously. If successful, the timeline for closing a commercial loan will collapse from up to 45 days down to roughly seven days. Similarly, opening accounts for complex commercial clients is expected to drop from over a day to under 20 minutes using conversational AI and automated document gathering.
Customers Bank is already using AI to write half of its software code, a move that has saved 28,000 hours of work so far, effectively offsetting the need to hire about 15 full-time employees. This shift is expected to allow the bank to potentially slow hiring and do more revenue per employee.
Investor Takeaway
Customers Bank is leveraging AI to automate core functions and improve efficiency, potentially setting a new standard for the banking industry.
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