Royal Bank of Canada's chief executive is considering whether to block Meta's Muse AI agent, according to people familiar with the matter, as banks move to limit their exposure to a consumer technology that sits inside their security perimeter. The review is the clearest sign yet that financial institutions are treating the new wave of agentic AI tools as a potential threat rather than a productivity add-on.
The CEO's deliberation comes as banks are reportedly closing ranks in response to Muse, Meta's AI agent that can act on a user's behalf across apps and services. No final decision has been made, and it's not clear what form a block would take — whether RBC would restrict Muse on corporate devices, bar employees from connecting bank systems to the agent, or take a broader position.
Why RBC is weighing a block
The concern is straightforward. An AI agent that can read messages, move between apps and take actions without a human pressing each button is hard to square with the controls banks use to protect customer money and data. A bank can audit a human employee. Auditing an agent that acts autonomously is a different problem, and RBC's CEO appears to be treating it that way.
The review also reflects a widening gap between how consumer tech companies ship AI features and how financial firms are allowed to adopt them. Meta can push Muse to users at scale; a bank has to answer to regulators, auditors and its own risk committee before it lets a third-party agent anywhere near account data.
The banks close ranks
RBC isn't alone. Reports suggest banks are coordinating their response to Muse, which would mark a notable shift in how the industry handles a single company's AI product. Lenders that once competed on digital features are finding common cause on the question of what an outside agent is allowed to touch.
That's a problem for Meta. Financial services are a high-value market for AI assistants, and a coordinated retreat by banks would narrow Muse's path into a sector that's already cautious about cloud and third-party integrations. Meta hasn't said publicly how it plans to address the banks' concerns.
What a block would actually mean
Even a partial block carries weight. If a major bank like RBC restricts Muse, other institutions may follow, and Meta could find its agent locked out of the corporate environments where many users first try new tools. Employees who want to use Muse for work would hit a wall, and the bank would avoid a category of risk it can't yet measure.
For customers, the effect is less direct but real. A bank that blocks the agent is telling its clients it doesn't trust the tool with their financial lives — a signal that could shape how quickly Muse is adopted for anything involving money.
The standoff ahead
RBC's CEO hasn't set a public timeline for a decision, and the bank hasn't commented on the review. Meta, for its part, is pushing Muse into a market where the gatekeepers are cautious and the regulators are watching. The question now is whether the two sides can agree on safeguards before the banks simply say no.
For now, the deliberation itself is the news. A CEO publicly weighing whether to block a major AI product is a marker of how unsettled the ground is between consumer tech and finance. The next signal will be whether other banks follow RBC's lead — or whether Meta can offer terms that keep the door open.
