Commonwealth Bank has been recognised as a stand-out performer in RFI Global’s 2026 Australian Banking & Finance Awards, securing 17 awards across business banking, consumer banking and product categories.
RFI Global announced the winners of its eighth annual awards in Sydney on Thursday, recognising institutions “setting the benchmark for performance” across consumer banking, business banking and insurance.
The program is designed to reflect what customers experience, rather than the views of an industry judging panel. RFI Global said winners are determined using insights from more than 62,000 consumers and 18,000 businesses surveyed annually through its Atlas research program, alongside consumer and business banking app interactions captured through its iSky platform.
Spotlight on digital performance
RFI Global said the 2026 awards introduced a new category acknowledging excellence in digital performance across consumer and business banking, reflecting the growing importance of digital engagement as expectations shift towards faster, simpler self-service.
Julien Wilson, RFI Global’s Chief Customer Officer, Asia Pacific, said the winners had sharpened their focus as competition and price differentiation increased. “By balancing competitive pricing with value-led propositions and meaningful customer experiences, these winners have built strong foundations for loyalty and trust,” he said.
RFI Global said this year’s winners stood out for responding to changing expectations by delivering “relevant, intuitive and trusted” solutions - a framing that reflects how closely customer service, trust and digital performance are now linked in banking.
“This recognition is especially meaningful for us because the RFI awards are informed by customer feedback,” CommBank Executive General Manager of Customer, Digital and AI Michael Baumann said.
“Our teams work hard to keep what our customers are telling us connected to the digital experiences that we deliver, and awards like this help recognise that the work is paying off and customers can see the difference it makes," he said.
“We have more than nine million customers regularly use the CommBank app, and they’re logging in on average almost 50 times a month. So any improvements we make in areas like everyday banking, money management, and CommBank Yello rewards makes banking more helpful and intuitive for millions of Australians, and we’re really proud of that.”
For CommBank, the strong result sits alongside other recent recognition tied to customer experience and digital capability. Canstar’s Digital Banking Awards for 2025 also named Commonwealth Bank “Digital Banking – Bank of the Year”, with Canstar noting the bank had won the digital banking award for the 16th year in a row.
Commbank investing in customer experience
In recent updates, CommBank has pointed to continued investment in service and protection measures aimed at making everyday banking safer and more convenient, particularly as scams and digital fraud remain persistent risks for customers.
CommBank has also been expanding its customer recognition program, CommBank Yello, with an increased range of benefits and offers and a more personalised in-app hub designed to make it simpler for eligible customers to track and unlock value.
And as the bank continues to test and scale AI across the organisation, Commonwealth Bank said its strategic partnership with OpenAI is focused on “exploring how AI can enhance customer experiences” and “better protect our customers”.
