Mobile Banking Updates - Jan 20

Haiti Earthquake Puts Mobile Payments in the Spotlight
"While a disaster of massive proportions, the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti nevertheless is boosting online giving and mobile payments in particular as U.S. donors seek the fastest way of putting their donations to work in the stricken country. As of 9 a.m. Eastern time Monday, more than 2 million donors had given $21 million in $10 increments to the American Red Cross’s Haitian earthquake-relief effort, according to Tony Aiello, chief executive of mGive, the technology platform of Mobile Accord Inc. Founded in 2005, Denver-based Mobile Accord works with 200 non-profit groups to raise funds via mobile devices."

Discover: Contactless Payment Sticker Users Inadvertently Crippling Performance
"In a cruel twist of fate, hapless contactless payment supporters (a dying breed if ever there was one) were swiped by some more bad news this week, courtesy of a new report from Discover Financial Services. It seems that in a trial of its Zip contactless payment program, most consumers tried to hide the stickers inside their phones, a move that unintentionally cripples performance."

BBVA Bancomer Aims For 500,000 New Mobile Banking Users
"Mexico's largest bank, BBVA Bancomer, said Monday that it aims to sign up half a million clients for its new mobile banking service during the first year of operations. In a press release, BBVA Bancomer said its Bancomer Movil service allows users to check their account balances, transfer money between accounts, and pay for goods purchased at retailers affiliated with the Nipper mobile payment system. "

FNBO Direct Launches CashEdge's POPmoney -- the First Email and Mobile Person-to-Person Payments Service for Banks
"CashEdge, Inc. (www.cashedge.com), the leading provider of Intelligent Money Movement™ services, announced today that FNBO Direct, a division of First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO), has launched CashEdge's person-to-person (P2P) payments service, POPmoney, to its customers. FNBO Direct began offering POPmoney on January 18 through its site www.fnbodirect.com."

Where is the Next-Generation Wallet?
"In the United States and around the world, financial institutions and non-banks are considering how and to what extent they should incorporate mobile financial services into their business models. With worldwide mobile subscriber penetration rates surpassing 50 percent in 2008, these decisions take on an even greater importance for competitive institutions. The evolutionary path plotted by mobile banking and mobile payments can be very different, depending on a variety of factors, including a market's level of banking sophistication, available technologies and experience with antecedent products, services or technologies."

70% of smart phone owners use mobile financial services
"Data Innovation today announced the findings from its first Mobile Money Study, a mobile survey of 246 smart phone users conducted December 2009. Data Innovation, a market research firm specializing in the wireless industry, conducts primary research with an exclusively mobile panel. The study found that nearly 70% of respondents had used at least one mobile banking and/or payment service in the past three months."

“Txt Ur Bank”: How Banks Are Incorporating SMS into Mobile Banking
As anyone walking through a crowd of high school student might notice, texting is one of the most popular forms of communication among young people. It makes sense; it’s a quick and easy way to keep in touch, not to mention easier to send in class than traditional note passing. However, as these teens become financially independent, banks are looking for a way to tap into their favorite mode of communication in order to attract this population of new customers."