AI Barometer 2025

FinTech Belgium, the country’s top federation for financial technology in Belgium, in partnership with Sailpeak, a specialized consulting firm for AI strategy and transformation, released the second annual version of the 2025 AI Barometer for the Belgian financial sector. 

This year's report is based on insights from 13 leading Belgian financial institutions including major players like BNP Paribas Fortis, KBC, Belfius, and Ethias and included use cases of 9 FinTech Belgium members. "The 2025 AI Barometer paints a clear picture: AI is no longer something futuristic, but a core component of strategic growth for Belgian financial institutions," said Raf De Kimpe, CEO of FinTech Belgium.

This transformation isn’t just anecdotal. Among the AI Barometer’s key findings is the fact that Belgian financial institutions are actively upskilling their personnel to ensure that they’re prepared to work alongside advanced AI systems, with at least 70% of them offering formal training and focusing on AI literacy and rolling out awareness campaigns. This growing prominence on strategic AI integration in financial institutions highlights the importance of recognising that AI readiness starts with its people, not just platforms. 

A Year Later: The AI Landscape Looks Very Different

Now in its second edition, the AI Barometer builds on last year’s findings, giving us a unique opportunity to compare year-over-year progress. But what’s changed since last year? More than you might think. In 2024, financial institutions’ put emphasis on foundational investments in AI. Now, there is a clear, strategic shift to dedicate significant budget increases towards advanced tools. This realignment shows how organisations are translating their ambition to become AI frontrunners into concrete investments, as reflected in the growth of their operational capabilities. 

But one premise remains: Bigger AI budgets mean that organisations need to adapt fast. The 2025 AI Barometer reveals that 85% of surveyed institutions now certify that they have a dedicated unit responsible for AI. Moreover, the 2025 AI Barometer highlights a massive leap in the direction of embedding GenAI into the Belgian financial sector’s core business processes. The new report discusses GenAI's deployment maturity levels, and its expanding footprint is no longer just about chatbots in customer service. People are starting to feel its presence everywhere, and it’s becoming so much more than anyone expected.

A Pragmatic Approach to GenAI Integration

The report highlights a no-nonsense approach: GenAI is used where it delivers real value, not just slapped on as a one-size-fits-all fix. This year, the AI Barometer revealed the approach to become a frontrunner for AI. Think: talking to a rep, but with the power of AI silently refining every word behind the scenes. This shift in approach towards Speech-to-Text solutions in customer service has also been identified as one of the key challenges to solve. The solution? Making sure that each interaction can be tailored for better user experience in customer service. 

GenAI for ALL

GenAI for All. A simple, ambitious yet achievable goal that most financial institutions in Belgium are aiming to reach. As Anthony Belpaire, Head of AI at BNP Paribas Fortis, put it:

“The changing environment of AI, encompassing traditional AI and the nascent GenAI and agentic AI, will unequivocally reveal which organizations possess superior data and enterprise architecture. This architectural strength will become the decisive competitive advantage for deploying AI services with optimal speed to market.”

While still highlighting the issue that reskilling may still be a challenge, companies can only implement so many workshops and AI implementation policies, but making sure that the appropriate skills stick to each individual is imperative. Incorporating unconventional methods to train personnel on AI is fitting. After all, AI itself was once seen as unconventional. 

The goal remains clear: learning through experimentation. If that means creating fun, out-of-the-box exercises to build confidence and familiarity, then so be it. Nico Vincent, Founding Partner of Sailpeak, reiterated that the new challenges highlighted in the 2025 AI Barometer “particularly around integration complexity and securing business buy-in, are precisely where specialized expertise becomes essential. At Sailpeak, we are dedicated to guiding financial institutions through these transformation phases, ensuring they unlock the full, measurable benefits of their AI investments and foster an AI-ready culture".

The 2025 AI Barometer makes one thing clear, AI in Belgian finance is no longer an emerging concept, it’s becoming a strategic necessity. A striking 85% of surveyed institutions now have a dedicated AI unit or competence center, up from just 37% last year, and over 60% have a validated or evolving AI roadmap. This signals a clear shift: financial players are no longer experimenting, they’re building for the long term. The report highlights this shift as a necessary part of embedding AI into everyday operations.