Apollo Chief Economist warns AI agents could trigger bank runs

Apollo: Apollo Global Management is a major alternative asset manager focused on credit, private equity, and real assets. Partner and Chief Economist Torsten Slok produces regular macroeconomic analysis through channels like The Daily Spark. The firm recently examined how agentic AI could influence consumer deposit allocation across banks. Torsten Slok: Torsten Slok is Partner and Chief Economist at Apollo Global Management, authoring daily insights on the US economy, inflation, and markets. He recently highlighted risks from AI agents automatically optimizing household cash holdings. His analysis connects technological automation directly to potential changes in banking funding dynamics. Jason Yanowitz: Jason Yanowitz is co-founder of Blockworks and hosts podcasts such as Empire and Bell Curve covering finance and digital assets. He shares and comments on macroeconomic developments via social media. Recently, he discussed and amplified perspectives from Apollo on AI-driven deposit optimization. Macro Commentary: Apollo's recent economic notes address emerging technological factors that could affect traditional bank deposit stability and lending capacity. AI Banking Impact: Financial firms are analyzing how autonomous AI agents could enable continuous comparison and movement of consumer funds across banking products. Deposit Optimization: Industry commentary explores the possibility that AI assistants may reduce reliance on low-yield checking accounts by seeking better rates automatically.