Personal Finance Advisors for All: How AI Is Reshaping Digital Banking in Russia
Artificial intelligence has entered the financial world. It analyzes user behavior in banking apps and now delivers actionable tips to help people improve their financial health.
Outsmarting Subscriptions: AI Boosts Financial Awareness
Sberbank, a heavyweight in Russia’s financial sector, has unveiled the most common mistakes people make in managing their personal finances. The insights come from Personal Finance Management (PFM) tools powered by AI, integrated into the Sberbank Online mobile app.
What did AI discover? Users lose up to 1,000 rubles per month simply by forgetting to cancel unused subscriptions. Those who set goals in the app and track their progress save nearly 30% more than those who don’t. Meanwhile, over 40% of clients who receive regular income via bank cards neither set savings goals nor open deposits.
While this is aggregate data, the Salute virtual assistant takes it further, analyzing individual behavior—whether spending is planned or impulsive, whether users build financial cushions—and doesn’t just point out inefficiencies but also suggests solutions.
This marks a new phase in how banks interact with clients. It’s not just about digitalizing services anymore—it’s about making them intelligent. First, the system learned to observe human behavior. Now, it’s helping people manage money smarter.
From Experiment to Everyday AI
According to bel.ru, more than 10 million clients already use the PFM service with built-in AI. About 15% of them apply its recommendations every month—whether claiming forgotten tax refunds or canceling unused subscriptions. When users earn well but lack savings, Salute steps in with advice on building an emergency fund.
This is no longer an experimental tech—it’s a mainstream consumer feature. For the first time, AI is available to every client as a personal financial assistant. It’s not a beta tool but a 24/7 service offering fast, data-driven financial guidance that goes beyond generic advice.
Russia’s Competitive Edge in AI-Driven Banking
Sberbank’s digital evolution has been incremental. Early features for managing subscriptions, expenses, and insurance appeared in 2019. Five years later, GigaChat MAX was integrated into the mobile app. In 2025, users gained access to a personal assistant that not only shows data but explains it and helps make financial decisions. The results are measurable: clients are becoming more financially literate and are saving more.
Other major Russian banks, including VTB and Tinkoff, are following suit. In 2025, over 50% of banks in Russia were actively deploying AI-driven solutions, according to finam.ru. Tinkoff’s AI Assistant offers personalized product suggestions and behavioral insights. VTB’s AI recommends investment strategies based on client profiles, while Gazprombank uses AI for analyzing corporate transactions in the B2B segment.
Artificial intelligence is no longer just a tool for analysts—it’s a financial consultant, once reserved for the wealthy, now working for tens of millions of people. And the transformation isn’t slowing down. Russia isn’t just following global fintech trends—it’s setting them.
