SAN DIEGO —­ Alkami is expanding its data strategy to include third-party providers in a bid to help financial institutions move beyond cross-selling and into client acquisition. 

The digital banking provider, which already aggregates core banking and user data, is building capabilities to incorporate external datasets, allowing institutions a more complete view of customers and prospects, Mark Leher, director of product management, told FinAi News at Alkami Co:lab 2026 on April 13.

“An account holder typically has 30% of their relationship with one primary institution,” Leher said. “You really need the third-party data to understand what’s their total asset picture … where are the real opportunities elsewhere.” 

FIs that have implemented the solution are observing quantifiable returns by dragging existing customers deeper into their ecosystem or providing them services which makes them migrate to a new bank’s platform.  

The $5 billion Canvas Credit Union, for one, saw $1.18 million in additional deposits through a checking account-focused campaign supported by Alkami’s AI-driven data marketing platform that started in Oct. 2025, Damian Jakubczyk, senior vice president of digital innovation, said during a panel at the event. 

The Denver-based credit union ran a digital marketing campaign for over three months using Alkami’s AI-driven data platform to target existing and potential customers in the Denver area, Jakubczyk said. 

Canvas Credit Union, which is focused on indirect auto lending, tried gaining customers for its other services including checking and savings accounts and saw “measurable impact” fairly quickly with the solution, Jakubczyk said. 

The tech 

Alkami’s AI-driven marketing platform pulls data from core systems multiple times a week and uses analytics to make transaction data actionable, he said. 

By layering in third-party data — from providers such as financial wellness service provider SavvyMoney — the company aims to help banks and credit unions identify growth opportunities for customers and new prospects outside of its base, Leher said. 

“It’s how can we help be that clearinghouse … aggregate multiple data sources and synthesize that for institutions,” he said. 

A focus is enabling acquisition through AI-driven ad campaigns, he said.  

The strategy builds on Alkami’s AI-driven data services, which rely primarily on machine learning models trained on enriched datasets, Leher said, adding that the company is building new gen AI driven solution and testing it in a sandbox. 

Alkami is piloting partnerships, including with data provider Analytic Marketing, to identify prospects with a high probability of signing new clients in targeted geographies, he added. 

“Account holders … reached digitally with data marketing campaigns were able to increase the growth rate of their products by 3x,” Leher said, noting the gains typically materialize within six to 12 months. 

With more than 200 FIs on its platform, Alkami is positioning third-party data integration as the next step in helping community banks and credit unions compete with larger institutions and fintechs, Leher said. An existing Alkami client might need less than 90 days to get onboarded on the platform. 

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