I find this report interesting, even though a bit dated, from Nov 2005.  The trend will only have increased since then, so its relevant.

This means that the use of search engines is edging up on email as a primary Internet activity on any given day. The Pew Internet Project data show that on a typical day, email use is still the top Internet activity. On any given day, about 52% of American Internet users are sending and receiving email, up from 45% in June of 2004.

Source: Pew Internet: Search engine use

Thinking about the next generation of banking site design.  One option would be a minimalist design based around search.  Bank sites are very information intensive (translated – way too wordy), and this could be a valid alternative.

tags: online+banking