Mobile Banking News, Net.Finance, and a New Job

I would like to take a minute to apologize because I won't be able to attend the Net.Finance conference later this week. However, please don't misunderstand, I am still a huge supporter of the event and I encourage you to sign up if you're not currently registered.

This is one of the few events held in the Chicago and it will provide you the opportunity to hear from:
Secil Watson (Wells Fargo)
Dion Lisle (Citi)
Dottie Yates (Bank of America)
Denise Rossi Henn (PNC)
Doug Peacock (M&I Bank)
Sarah Overcash (SunTrust)
Kevin Lynch (1st Mariner Bank)

In case you haven't heard, the reason I won't be able to attend the conference is because I have accepted a new position and I'm preparing to move my family across the country. My new role is still within the mobile industry, but I won't be able to share the details for another couple of weeks.

Also, please take comfort in knowing that I will continue writing the Mobile Banking Blog and it will remain the single most comprehensive resource for mobile banking news...

P2P Payments: What You Need to Know
"U.S. banking institutions are quickly adopting the new, simple payment solution called 'Person-to-Person' (P2P) for customers to send money to family and friends via email or text message. At the top of the list for reasons to deploy this new mobile payments solution: Customer convenience. But at a time when fraudsters prey upon electronic transactions, what are P2P's unique security concerns? For insights on P2P, we spoke to two institutions that have deployed the service, as well as a P2P solution providers."

Despite America's iPhone Obsession, We're Behind the World's Mobile Calling Curve
"Despite our noisy fascination with iPhones and iPads, it turns out the United States is one of the least advanced places in the world when it comes to the way we use mobile devices. That is the conclusion of a new study by Sybase 365, which provides services for mobile messaging and mobile commerce.

In fact, when it comes to using mobile devices for things like text messaging and instant messaging, the survey indicates we’re getting blown away. Only 31.5 percent of people in the United States use a mobile device for text messaging and sending IMs—while in China 90 percent of people surveyed use mobile devices for those things."

ICO in talks with Barclays over weak mobile banking security
"The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is in talks with Barclays Bank about the security set-up of its mobile banking service. Last week a Computer Weekly reader complained about the ease with which the online banking service can be accessed. People who lose their bank card or have their card details copied could have their banking transactions exposed to prying eyes. The problem affects the Barclays.mobi web link which connects customers to pages designed to be viewed on mobile phones."

The State of Mobile Banking 2010
"2010 will be remembered as the year that implementing mobile banking moved from being a get-on-the-bandwagon trend to table stakes in the American retail financial services market, the year that big banks began to recognize the channel's own legitimacy, and the year that most mid-tier and community banks put mobile banking on their short list of things to get done.

For banks, the good news is that, relative to other pressing technology investments like enterprise risk management or core replacement, mobile banking is relatively cheap to bring to market. The challenge is that there are many moving parts to consider: basic banking functionality, security, back-end integration, payments integration, NFC, and marketing and loyalty plays. The bigger challenge is that many consumers are already steps ahead when it comes to adopting a mobile lifestyle, so every month that lagging banks spend deliberating on all these options is another month that competitors grab mindshare as the mobility-focused brand."

S. Korea sees 11.4 percent increase in Internet banking in Q1
"More South Koreans used the Internet banking in the first quarter of this year from the previous quarter as a report from the central bank Thursday showed an 11.4 percent increase in people who engaged in online financial transactions.

According to the Bank of Korea, South Korea saw an average 33 million online banking transactions per day in the January-March period, a rise from the previous quarter's 29.7 million transactions.

It also resulted in a 3.9 percent increase from the previous quarter in total value of Internet banking transactions as it reached 33.6 trillion won (30 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter alone, the central bank said."

Berg Insight’s figures on mobile banking reviewed
"Amongst the innumerable analyst opinions that the purchase of Palm by HP was the best thing since sliced bread, a piece of research from Berg Insight on mobile banking appears to have been overlooked.

The company is predicting that the worldwide number of users of mobile banking and related services is forecasted to grow from 55 million users last year [ 2009] to 894 million users in 2015. Which is pretty impressive.

The problem with such research is that these reports tend to be very ‘developed world’ centric. Take this example from Marcus Persson, who is a telecom analyst with Berg Insight."

The Young and the Mobile
"On some New Jersey trains this spring, the guys looking out the window included George Washington and Abe Lincoln. Sun National Bank says the unusual image succeeded in getting attention.

As part of a major campaign to tout mobile banking—which it began offering in February—it wrapped trains and buses in advertising that depicts the presidents as commuters.

'The message is, your money is moving wherever you go,' says Ed Malandro, the executive vice president of consumer banking for the $3.6 billion-asset Sun in Vineland. 'The presidents are symbolic of money, that’s why we used them.'”

American Express Launches Express Mobile App for iPhone
"American Express has announced the launch of its new mobile banking suite, which will allow cardholders to access their accounts from their Blackberry, Windows Mobile Phone, iPhone or iPod Touch.

The official American Express iPhone App, available for the iPhone or iPod Touch, allows you to pay your bill, check your balances, and access other card services all fro your mobile phone. With the app, which is available for free on the iTunes Store, you can see recent transactions, view membership rewards, and log into your regular American Express online account."

Chase is First U.S. Bank with a Native iPad App
"Last week, Spain’s BancSabadell and “la Caixa” became the first banks in the world with iPad apps. But the U.S. was still shut out until today, when Chase became the first U.S. bank with a native iPad app (iTunes link). It doesn’t yet show in the Finance category of my iPad. But if I search for Chase, it appears as a download option.

I successfully downloaded it, and about 60 seconds later was looking at my Chase account. Unlike some banks, it was not necessary to activate the app in online banking. First-time users log in to the app with their online banking credentials. Then an 8-digit code is sent to a pre-existing phone number or email address. Users then enter this code into the iPad."

Mobile Payments Market to Quadruple by 2014, reaching $630bn in value, although still only accounting for around 5% of ecommerce retail sales
"A new study from Juniper Research has found that the value of mobile payments for digital and physical goods, money transfers and NFC (Near Field Communications) transactions will reach almost $630bn by 2014, up from $170bn this year, representing the gross value of all purchases or the value of money being transferred.

The mobile payments report revealed that growth across all market segments was being driven by the wide adoption of Smartphones and the increased use of apps stores. In addition SMS ticketing schemes such as those offered by OBB Austrian Railways and Skane Traffic in Sweden were also important developments. Shopping by mobile at stores such as Amazon Mobile is also tipped for significant expansion over the next five years."