29 Distinguished Bank Ads that Will Make You Rethink Financial Advertising

In the world of advertising, banks have to work extra to make sure that potential clients view them as trustworthy. When most of them offer more or less the same services, the best bank ads have to go beyond just presenting what those services are.

With creativity being a must when it comes to creating digital banking ads, most institutions are struggling to keep the bar high and ensure that they get picked over competitors.

While some are new to the scene, others are working on retaining or gaining new customers, and through creative bank ads, they can all fulfill this goal. 

However, when we’re talking about creativity, we mean exciting and out-of-the-box ideas that have the potential to intrigue and attract the attention of potential clients.

With this in mind, if you’re working on creating great bank adverts, we can help out. We went ahead and selected some of the most creative bank advertisement examples that you can surely draw some inspiration from. Check them out below:

1. Commerce Bank

Here’s one of the best online banking ads out there. It’s an ad for a college trust fund that uses a relatable image, as well as a great message to get the target audience on board, which are parents with small children. This is one of those bank ads that’s endearing, simple, send an empathetic message without coming across as overly salesy. Not to mention the fact that they nailed down the sleeping and resting part. 

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2. Beneficial Bank

This ad from Beneficial Bank relies on minimal headline copy, which is nicely paired with the image. It’s the perfect representation of their message, and the best thing is that it draws attention because it’s an unexpected combo. I mean, how often do you see carousels in bank ads?

The definition of revolving debt is cleverly represented by this carousel of expenses, which includes things like a car, boat, engagement ring, or student loans.

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Another ingenious ad from Beneficial Bank uses the same formula as the one above. It’s another slightly comical representation of the popular word in the financial industry “escrow.” By using an actual crow as the primary visual, the ad will leave most people pleasantly surprised. Add to this the fact that the crow is wearing a top with the letter S on it, which makes it an ES-CROW.

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Using analogy once again, Beneficial Bank adds another great ad to its repertoire. This time, focusing on the money market, aka short-term loans that can help a business take off. The image of a market stand full of cash is sending the message that this particular bank can help out by understanding what your business needs and helping out with a loan.

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3. Rabita Bank

Rabita Bank’s ad is so clean that it only uses three words, and this creative image of a market being turned into an actual shop. When you have such a powerful design, it’s easy to make an impression, and this bank ad does precisely that.

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4. Bank Aljazira

Most digital banking ads will usually feature simple images, but with a powerful message. The thing that can work wonders is using basic concepts, such as money, and adding them in an unusual context. For example, in the ad below, Bank Aljazira used a few bills and places them in a waiting room, so it appears as if they are people. This definitely breaks the mold of how money is usually portrayed.

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Although it’s not always easy to come up with a creative idea, especially for the banking industry, the point is to make an impression and stand out. This ad stands out in the financial services industry due to the great combination of copy and imagery that uses humor.

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“A credit card that gives you more” is the message that this ad focuses on, and the use of the card-suitcase image is entirely in line with the theme. It’s a great idea, mostly because the simple, yet powerful message in combination with the picture is very easy to understand.

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This bank loan advertisement, creatively hinting at the Mesozoic era and comparing the extinction of dinosaurs with the extinction of money, is definitely coming across as very interesting and original. This is yet another example of taking certain elements that have no connection with each other and putting them in the same context, resulting in a fascinating ad.

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5. Bankia

Talking about eye-catching bank ads, this one from Bankia is so full of color that is sure to stand out. It’s definitely different than the usual bank adverts we’re used to. In fact, at first glance, you won’t even guess that it’s for a financial institution because of the bright pink background and funky illustrations.

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Instead of focusing on the actual service the bank is offering, which is managing investment funds, this ad is putting the spotlight on the benefit of using this service, which is more time for doing what you enjoy doing, whatever that is. In this case, it’s a nice dinner out in the town with your partner. 

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Nobody wants to work forever, and this ad is doing a great job at pointing out what you need to do to make sure you’re all set even after you retire. Santa Claus cannot really quit now, can he? But most people can and will, which is where pension plans come in handy. 

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If you pay close attention to this ad, you’ll notice that the word “forever” is represented by the infinity symbol-shaped table. Paired with the scientist’s facial expression, this ad points out the alternative to working forever–a pension plan that they can provide.

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Mixing literature with bank advertising ideas is almost always a good approach. In this case, Bankia chose to go with Don Quijote, making a parallel between giants or windmills and digital or local banks, saying that the choice is up to you. The ad is attractive mostly because it’s surprising, you wouldn’t usually make this association on your own.

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With this ad, Bankia is not only highlighting the fact that it’s a sponsor for a wine fair, but also that choosing them is the right decision, mainly because they can help keep your business balanced.

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Talk about getting some perspective, here’s some shocking info: emojis are pretty old. This type of information is used to create that sense of urgency and also put things into perspective, which is great advertising for a pension plan. Time really does fly.

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6. MEEM Bank

This is one of the best bank advertisement examples, where MEEM Bank promotes a Multi-Currency account that would allow any customer to be a “Citizen of the World” basically. And if you had any problem picturing what that would look like, this image of a man living like a local in the Wild Wild West that can help with that.

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7. Postbank

Bank loan ads can and should get as specific as possible to appeal to a target audience. In this case, Postbank is addressing females interested in pursuing an education. This is very clear from the copy and the use of the word “queen,” paired with a highly creative image of a pen with a tip shaped like a queen chess piece. There’s also an alternative ad where the word “king” is being used to both genders are covered.

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8. Warba Bank

Your wallet deserves a vacation, and Warba Bank can help with that, which is successfully illustrated in the visual. On top of the excellent representation of this idea, the ad is also visually appealing due to the sky-like background.

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9. Central Bank of Africa

Now here’s a creative financial ad that is also quite inspiring. It goes beyond concepts and money-related visuals and focuses on actual people, their hopes and dreams, making the bank behind this ad come across as more human and trustworthy. You can actually relate to this ad and be more curious as to what this particular bank has to offer because it’s different than what we’re used to. 

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10. LKXA Youth Bank

Using humor in an ad is entirely done by LKXA Youth Bank here. They’re associating all the elements in this image with the advantages of choosing the bank and prompting people to try and find Wally. When people are asked to engage with an ad, this will ensure that they’ll spend more time on it and, as a result, viewers will remember the ad and the brand for a more extended period.

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11. FirstBank

Just when you thought you won’t be seeing a banana bread post ever again, here it is again. Now, it’s in the form of a bank advert.

At first, it might seem too confusing, and you might find asking yourself, “What’s the connection between mortgage and banana bread?”

The title does warn you that this is actually a mortgage ad, but what follows is an actual recipe. Simply put, the mortgages offered by the bank give you more time for baking breaking banana, which the majority of us love (even though we’re kind of sick of it).

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12. HSBC

A house lies on top of an iceberg made out of food, representing all the hard work and dedication that went into acquiring that house. It’s a great visual, and the message is that once you do get to the result of your hard work, you need insurance to protect your goods, and here’s where HSBC comes into play.

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This is an ad that puts the spotlight on the fact that not many people may know about and somehow manages to connect it through the copy with the bank’s mission. It’s a great strategy that can help you make a great impression. As with any ad, it’s also essential to point out what you can do for your clients, and HSBC does precisely that in this example.

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13. UBank

This is a brilliant ad for savings plans that encourages people to take up some healthy habits and ditch the unrewarding ones. With its straightforward message and a powerful visual, this ad is very cleverly done.

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14. Barclays

It’s true what we previously mentioned about literature and bank advertising ideas, and here’s another genius example of that, this time focused on the classic The Portrait of Dorian Gray. We’ll overlook the small typo in the character’s name and give this ad bonus points for being funny and original at the same time.

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Although not the most legible ad due to the small font and the inverted position of the text, it’s still doing a great job of sending a message. With the use of a great illustration to show that they can help businesses move forward, Barclays manages to stand out.

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15. Banco Financiero

We’ve all probably thought about the end of the world in some way or another (especially after seeing The World After Tomorrow). However, Banco Financiero went the extra mile and imagined it for this ad.

It’s a play on the fact that even if natural disasters happen, the client is still going to earn some money if they go with this bank. It’s this touch of the absurd that makes this ad great in so many ways.

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16. Bank Norwegian

If this image didn’t make you giggle a bit, you need to take another look. Although the association of a pony with saving money would be enough to steal a smile from you, the look on the lady’s face is the absolute cherry on top. This ad has everything to make an impression and get potential clients to find out more about this particular bank.

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Final Thoughts

I hope you’ve enjoyed these bank advertisement examples and that they’re going to inspire you to create something different and think outside the box.

Let us know which one is your favorite and why. Mine is the banana bread recipe one 😃.