For years, banks have competed for customers by offering attractive interest rates, cash back rewards, and convenient digital experiences. But as consumers gain access to an expanding range of financial services providers, attracting new customers is only part of the challenge. Increasingly, banks must find ways to encourage lasting engagement, build loyalty, and help customers make meaningful progress toward their financial goals.

One approach is to connect everyday banking products with incentives that reward positive financial behaviors. Rather than treating lending, checking, and savings as separate relationships, financial institutions have an opportunity to bring these services together to help customers manage debt, build savings, and strengthen their financial health. The result can be a more valuable banking relationship for both the institution and the customer.

To learn more about this approach, we spoke with Mark Elliot, Chief Customer Officer at Happen Bank, formerly LendingClub Bank. The company, which serves more than five million members, offers a suite of interconnected lending, checking, savings, and financial wellness products designed to help consumers make progress toward their financial goals. Happen Bank won the Best Customer Experience Solution category at the 2026 Finovate Awards.

Mark Elliot: Thank you! We’re proud of this recognition because it reflects how we build our customer experiences—clearing the way for people going places. That only works when the experience holds up in the moments that matter, like taking steps to manage debt, taking out a personal loan for a purchase that can’t wait, or building savings.

What I think set our application apart was the connection between our products and the needs they address for our members.

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