Mobile Banking Updates - May 31

Mobile Banking: American Express and Chase offer receipt management
"The task of organizing receipts for business expenses can be overwhelming and time-consuming endeavor. American Express and Chase have found a way to make this task easier for small business owners who may need to organize receipts for bookkeeping or tax purposes, by allowing them to manage their receipts online and on-the-go."

Banking Consultant Nuciforo: Google Is 'Biggest Threat' to Banking Industry
"Google is threatening to disrupt the banking industry in a big way. Its products, including Search, Shopping, Offers and Wallet, are a virtual slap in the face for banks and PayPal when they are integrated with Google Glass. Combined with Google Glass, they could be a knock out punch, writes banking consultant Michael Nuciforo in an article for American Banker."

International Mobile Banking Updates - May 30

Mobile banking on USSD likely to get delayed
"Full-scale mobile banking services over the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) platform, a text message-based interactive backbone could hit a roadblock with both GSM and CDMA operators at loggerheads with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on the revenue-sharing model."

Bank Muscat’s mBanking wins best mobile payment app in ME award
"Bank Muscat, the flagship financial services provider in the Sultanate, has won the ‘Best Mobile Payment Application in the Middle East’ award for its state-of-the-art mBanking mobile services. The prestigious award was received by Tariq Atiq, AGM — Cards & eBanking, at a ceremony held in Dubai as part of the Cards & Payments 2013 Middle East seminar, which is reckoned the largest cards payment and identification event in the Middle East."

Mobile banking changing Africa’s financial landscape
"COMMUNICATIONS technology is reshaping Africa with more people on the continent using their mobile phone to bankthan in any other region in the world, reports Africa in Fact. It says mobile phone technology is especially useful in banking where many people live in rural areas far from cities where most banks are located. Kenya is the global model for this innovative use of mobile banking technology but the report notes, the potential for mobile banking in Nigeria is immense, mostly because of the size of its population (Africa's largest), and the size of its unbanked population."

Leading Vietnamese Bank Reaches New Clients with IBM Smarter Computing
"At today's (NYSE: IBM) Technology Conference and Exhibition in Hanoi, IBM announced that Saigon Hanoi Commercial Joint Stock Bank, one of the leading commercial banks in Vietnam, has turned to IBM Systems and Software to streamline business processes across its IT infrastructure and enable broader client reach through new online and mobile banking services."

Mobile banking remains “promising land” for banks
"Experts believe that mobile banking would enter the hot development period in the time to come, when the number of smart phone users increases rapidly. A report says that 50 percent of the mobile phones to be sold in the future would be smart phones. Le Thanh Tam, Chief Executive Officer of IDG ASEAN said he can see the great potentials for developing electronic payment, believing that 98 percent of Vietnamese would use mobile banking services in the next five years."

Second RBS apology for banking app glitch
"RBS has apologised for the second time in two months after customers were unable to log in to their accounts through their mobile phone app. Many customers of the RBS Group, which includes NatWest and Ulster Bank, were unable to use the app for two and a half hours on Friday. A similar problem occurred at the end of March, when the app's users were unable to check their accounts. RBS is 81% owned by the taxpayer. About two million customers have the app."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 29

Director of Cybersecurity Clay Calvert on Mobile Banking Apps
"MetroStar Systems Director of Cybersecurity Clay Calvert was recently interviewed by Medill News about mobile banking security. They were interested in the risks involved with mobile banking technology and whether it should be viewed as secure. In an article by Matt Higgins released on May 16, 2013, Clay was provided his insight."

Mashreq believes Smart Phones need Smart Banking with the launch of Snapp Mobile Banking
"Mashreq plans to tap the rising demand for banking services by mobile phone users with the launch of an enhanced version of its Mobile Banking Service called ‘Snapp’. The current version of the app is available on Apple and Android phones. A version of Snapp will soon be made available to customers on Blackberry10 and Windows8 and tablet based platforms. Registration and usage of this service is simple and free of cost. To add to the convenience, customers can access Mashreq Snapp using their MashreqOnline username and password. There is no requirement to register separately for Mobile Banking. This advanced mobile banking application will provide customers a simple and user-friendly access to their bank accounts from their smartphone."

CR Money Minute: Better smart phone banking security?
"Several major U.S. banks are beta-testing a new way to give you access to your mobile banking account, which could mark the beginning of the end for your password headaches, according to Toby Rush, CEO of EyeVerify, a Kansas City, Kan., technology firm. Rush did not name the banks, citing confidentiality agreements. But he said testing was expected to continue through summer and consumers might see the technology on the market as early as this fall. Wireless carriers are also interested, Rush said."

Vantage Credit Union Launches iPhone Mobile Banking App
"Vantage Credit Union launched its new iPhone mobile banking app, MyMobile, this week on the Apple Store for its members with MyVantage online banking accounts. The free online banking app works anywhere, anytime, to quickly and securely check account balances, view transaction history, transfer funds, pay bills, deposit checks via remote deposit and even activate rewards."

'Hello. I'm on Mount Everest': Mobile banking hits highest peak
"Two mountaineers have set a world record by being the first to use a mobile banking app on Mount Everest. Climbers Horacio Galanti and Horacio Cunietti achieved the feat using Standard Chartered Breeze mobile banking apps during their expedition to summit the highest peak in the world; an altitude of 8,848 metres above sea level."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 27

Consumers Assume Mobile Banking Bill Pay Is Fast, But It Isn’t
"In an effort to generate fee revenue, some banks and credit unions have begun offering expedited bill payment through their online bill pay platform. Auditing a sample of institutions that offered expedited bill payment revealed that none extend this feature to their mobile banking platform. Why not? Wouldn’t you think that when someone pays a bill with their mobile phone, they probably require, expect, or assume the payment to be expedited?"

Reston firm turns to decades-old technology to set up mobile banking in Central Asia
"Not all new ideas for technology have to be, well, new. As the start-ups around it tinkered with the cutting edge, a Reston company called GeoPay stuck by decades-old technology — the same used in messaging systems that led to the earliest cellphones — to create a mobile-banking platform."

ESET Mobile Security scores full marks in banking Trojan test
"ESET Mobile Security has scored full marks for detecting mobile banking Trojans, in a group test conducted by Germany’s AV-TEST , a leading independent security research institute. In a group test of 11 security apps, ESET Mobile Security detected 100% of threats."

PlainPay, MyBank pair up to provide total mobile banking solution
"Virtual multi-channel banking solutions provider Auriga and online payment platform provider MyBank are combining their expertise to create an all-in-one mobile banking and payments app that will enable everything from mobile billpay to cardless ATM withdrawals. The solution will use PlainPay, an Auriga app that allows bank customers to perform nearly all their banking operations via mobile. PlainPay will be integrated with MyBank, the online payment platform promoted by EBA Clearing, which is owned by 64 major banks operating in Europe."

The Next Wave Of Mobile Banking
"In the U.S market today, retail banks offer a standardized mobile banking application. They enable their customers to monitor expenses, transfer funds and pay bills. This provides the convenience and ease of banking for the “on the go” customer. In general, mobile banking is an expanding market and has changed the way customers manage their funds. However, it is arguable that the user experience of each of the retail banks applications is similar. The application allows the end user to view their account balance, transfer funds and pay a multitude of bills."

Aiming To Be The Mobile Banking App To Rule Them All, Numbrs Stashes $7.7M Of Fresh Funding
"Chalk this up as one to watch closely in the world of consumer fintech. Numbrs, a mobile-first banking app founded out of Swiss company builder Centralway, has raised 7.5 million Swiss francs (~$7.7 million) from its parent, capital it will use to build on its pending German launch, with the UK and Swiss markets up next, followed by Singapore and Hong Kong."

Sovereign Bank Enters the Mobile Arena
"Boston-based Sovereign Bank ($85 billion in total assets), a subsidiary of Santander Holdings USA, this month formally rolled out its first mobile banking app after a lengthy process of research and customer surveys. Nuno Matos, managing director of retail banking at Sovereign Bank, says it was important to offer a robust mobile service to customers based on what they wanted out of a mobile app. The app's features include the ability to check account balances and activity including deposits, withdrawals and interest accrued; transfers between accounts; BillPay functions such as scheduling recurring and one-time payments or checking payment status; an ATM/branch locator, and one-touch customer service. It is currently available for Android and Apple devices."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 23

The Next Wave of Mobile Banking
"In the U.S market today, retail banks offer a standardized mobile banking application. They enable their customers to monitor expenses, transfer funds and pay bills. This provides the convenience and ease of banking for the “on the go” customer. In general, mobile banking is an expanding market and has changed the way customers manage their funds. However, it is arguable that the user experience of each of the retail banks applications is similar. The application allows the end user to view their account balance, transfer funds and pay a multitude of bills."

Sovereign launches mobile app
"Sovereign Bank has joined its big bank competitors in the mobile banking world by launching a mobile application for consumer customers that works on Apple and Android devices. The bank said that customers will be able to access account balances, transfers between accounts, bill paying functions, ATM/branch locator and customer service."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 22

Android's Mobile Dominance Fails to Simplify Bank App Development
"Google's Android mobile operating system has grown its market share lead, according to new data from Gartner. Indeed, the research firm says the platform accounts for 74.4% of smartphone units sold worldwide during the first quarter of 2013. Furthermore, Gartner found there are almost 50% more Android smartphones in the market than a year ago."

Chase Tops Keynote's Mobile Banking Ranking a Third Time
"JPMorgan Chase has yet again won a ranking of mobile banking apps. In this one, Keynote's semiannual mobile banking scorecard, Chase came in first for the third time in a row. Wells Fargo came in second and Bank of America third. In late April, Forrester dubbed Chase the best in mobile banking out of 15 large multinational banks, for the second time in a row. What does Chase do right to get the top nod so often?"

Banking Up Launches at FinovateSpring, Lets Any Business Offer Customers a Trusted Alternative to Traditional Banking
"Banking Up launches at FinovateSpring today a first-of-its-kind personal finance platform that lets banks and businesses provide customers with a smart, mobile alternative to traditional checking accounts. Along with the launch, Plastyc Inc., which developed Banking Up, announced that it is now doing business as Banking Up. Over 24 million households have poor access to mainstream banking, and 91 percent have mobile phones and smartphones, according to the FDIC. Banking Up gives banks and businesses a scalable way to provide customers in their local communities with an affordable, high-quality banking option."

Green Dot Sets July 4th Launch Of GoBank
"Green Dot, the provider of prepaid debit cards and other financial products, is looking to launch its big move into the mobile banking market on July 4th, the company said Tuesday afternoon. According to Green Dot, it plans to launch its service, GoBank, on Independence Day on iPhone, Android, and online--and also will be making a big, national push to market the service."

Is electronic banking killing the bank branch? PNC pares branches citing customers' online trends "Another bank branch bites the dust. Three and counting among PNC Financial’s branches in Central Pennsylvania. Another ten PNC branches in Western Pennsylvania. And more to come, as banks evaluate their networks and analyze mobile banking and ATM trends. For so long, it seemed a bank branch was opening on every corner. That era might be coming to an end."

International Mobile Banking Updates - May 21

Mobile Expert Series Mark Crofton
"Cognizant SMAC Analyst Kevin Benedict interviews SAP's Mark Crofton at SAPPHIRE NOW 2013 on the mobile solution and mobile banking market in Latin America."

RBC, Bell Mobility add to payments rivalry
"Canadian bank RBC and Bell Mobility, the country’s second largest mobile operator, are to launch a service that further heats up competition in the country’s payments market. RBC’s mobile banking customers will be able to buy goods in shops using their debit or credit cards, so long as they have a compatible NFC-based smartphone from Bell Mobility. The service will launch later this year, following a roadtest with selected merchants and consumers in the summer."

UPDATE 2-Safaricom warns on mobile banking tax as profit surges
"Kenya's top telecoms firm Safaricom expects to maintain its almost 40 percent earnings margin this year but "premature taxes" could stifle growth of lucrative mobile phone-based money transfers, its chief executive said on Tuesday. Safaricom, 40-percent owned by Britain's Vodafone, said pretax profit climbed to 25.5 billion shillings ($304.30 million) in its year to end-march, off the back of 16 percent growth in total revenue."

Noor Islamic Bank launches reality mobile banking app
"Noor Islamic Bank (Noor)’s augmented reality ‘Bank in Your Hand’ smartphone and tablet application is now available for download from Apple’s App Store, the banks announced in a press reealse. Work is also in progress on adapting the app to other smart phone platforms, it said."

HSBC Bank Brazil expands DIGIPASS for Mobile deployment
"VASCO Data Security International, Inc. (Nasdaq: VDSI; www.vasco.com), a leading software security company specializing in authentication products, announces that HSBC Bank Brazil, a subsidiary of HSBC Holdings, one of the largest financial conglomerates in the world, deployed the DIGIPASS for Mobile technology for an enhanced group of retail and corporate customers, while expanding the offered online and mobile services. Currently, more than 90,000 account holders use their mobile device to access all self-service channels to execute financial transactions. With this enhancement, HSBC Brazil is the first and only financial institution worldwide to fully integrate access to internet banking, mobile services, contact center, ATMs and e-commerce."

SAP Technology powers mobile banking for Standard Bank communities
"STANDARD Bank has introduced the SAP business solutions in bringing banking services closer to the people of Tembisa in South Africa. It introduced AccessBanking as a service to help people in communities apply for a bank account and then use the account. It has used technology from SAP to enable agents to enable customers to set up bank accounts without customers having to travel to a major city. SAP technology is used to enable new accounts to be configured in the field using a mobile handheld device."

Mobile banking up 11.5% in South Korea
"The daily use of mobile banking in South Korea rose 11.5 percent in the first quarter from three months earlier, an increase aided by the growing use of smartphones, reports Yonhap News Agency citing the Bank of Korea. Transactions by mobile banking or banking services accessed via mobile handsets were valued at KRW 1.26 trillion per day in the January-March period, up from KRW 1.13 trillion three months earlier."

ING DIRECT Mobile Banking App Wins BlackBerry Achievement Award for 'Putting Customers First'
"ING DIRECT has been recognized for its unique mobile banking experience on BlackBerry® 10 smartphones. The bank, which was the first Canadian financial institution to introduce a BlackBerry 10 app, has won the BlackBerry Achievement Award in the 'Putting Customers First' category, which acknowledges customer-centric experiences that make a business stand out. The ING DIRECT mobile app provides customers with a convenient and secure way to conduct their banking transactions. The app puts an increased focus on savings through features like "Orange Alerts", pushing notifications to the BlackBerry® Hub for triggers such as account balances reaching pre-determined thresholds. This is just one of the intuitive features the bank has built into its mobile app with the aim to simplify and modernize banking for all Canadians."

PMC Bank Deploys Array's Application Delivery Controller
"Punjab Maharashtra Cooperative Bank (PMC Bank), provider of banking services to customers with utmost ease and convenience, has chosen Array Networks' ADC and server load balancing solutions to serve their customers with secure high speed connectivity for internet and mobile banking. PMC Bank required high availability, speedy performance and reliable security for their internet and mobile services portals. They wanted to enhance their online transaction processing in order to provide customers with good user experience and around the clock service. PMC Bank conducted a detailed requirements analysis with their compliance and networking teams which was subsequently shared with various vendors. All the leading ADC products were tested; Array Networks' Proof of Concept (POC) solution was selected after a month of live internet usage at PMC's production site."

Banking now goes high-tech with unmanned services
"Standard Chartered Bank customers no longer need to endure long queues to access financial services after the lender opened a digital branch last week that offers unmanned banking services. Dubbed ‘Breeze@ The Junction’, the electronic banking unit provides all the banking solutions available at traditional branches, but through online and mobile banking as wells as intelligent ATMs. The units are fitted with iPads, personal computers, touch screens mounted on walls, and free wireless Internet; allowing customers to carry out transactions on their own."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 19

EyeVerify Rolls Out Authentication Service for Mobile Banking
"EyeVerify, a maker of identity management software for mobile banking, is rolling out its service to the financial industry. The Kansas City-based company said Monday that banks, payments providers and other businesses can use its EyePrint system to secure accounts, authenticate transactions and restrict access to systems. EyePrint renders the optical equivalent of a fingerprint by matching blood vessels in the whites of people's eyes to verify their identity automatically."

Mobile Banking Explodes and Keynote Announces Who Does It Best – One Billion Mobile Banking Consumers Expected by 2017
"Keynote® (KEYN), the global leader in Internet and mobile cloud testing and monitoring, today announced the results of the Spring 2013 edition of the Keynote Mobile Banking Scorecard, first launched in 2011 and the standard in benchmarking consumer mobile banking offerings."

Citi sets sights on international markets to cement mobile banking focus
"Financial institution Citi is rolling out its iPad application internationally to reach new groups of consumers and show them how mobile banking works. Citi has rolled out the iPad app to Russia and Hong Kong as part of a bigger marketing strategy to expand its global footprint this year. Mobile has played a key role for Citi over the past few years to help clients manage their accounts from their handsets."

APWG Report: Mobile Device Crimeware Evolves into Global Criminal Marketplace in Response to Mobile Payment and Banking Expansion
"The sprawling mobile devices marketplace has spawned an industrialized mobile financial fraud plexus that today drives increasingly sophisticated criminal technical innovation to exploit the mobile devices explosion. And it is funded by increasing revenues derived from potent new developments in mobile malware, a new APWG report released concludes. In a “post-PC” era, mobile devices increasingly present an attractive, practical and economical alternative to traditional desktops. In the coming years, global mobile payments are predicted to exceed $1.3 trillion, moreover, presenting a mother load of opportunity for cybercrime gangs who appreciate the vulnerabilities of these peripatetic communications and computing platforms, the APWG’s analysis reports."

Refundo Launches Mobile Banking App at FinovateSpring 2013
"Refundo, a national provider of financial services to the underserved, launched its widely-anticipated mobile banking app today at FinovateSpring 2013, which is now available for free download on the App Store. FinovateSpring is a demo-based conference for innovative startups and established companies in the fields of banking and financial technology, and is held today at the Design Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco."

Chase Tops Keynote's Mobile Banking Scorecard for Third Time in a Row
"Chase took top honors in the Keynote Mobile Banking Scorecard for overall mobile web experience in Q1 2013. This is Chase's third consecutive win in Keynote's ranking of mobile offerings among the 15 largest U.S. banks. In the latest Keynote Scorecard, Chase ranked #1 in two of four categories - Functionality and Ease of Use - to take the top spot overall."

Be smart about mobile banking
"Mobile banking represents a huge leap forward in the area of banking convenience. It also represents a huge risk to your personal information. Here’s how to minimize the risk and enjoy the convenience. Getting up-to-the-minute account information and having immediate access to funds via a mobile device is one of the great technical accomplishments of banking. The problem is that without adequate security precaution, this ease of access can be available to people who have no right to it. To protect yourself, a person does well to do two things:"

Mobile Banking Updates - May 16

Mobile Banking Revolution (Infographic)
"It’s no secret that mobile banking has taken off in recent years and continues to grow by leaps and bounds. To help illustrate just how much mobile banking is growing FICO pulled together an infographic with some impressive mobile stats. For example, did you know that by 2017 an estimated 1 billion people will be using mobile banking? Read on to learn more about the mobile revolution."

Mobile banking expected to grow 18% annually through 2017
"The evolution of technology has brought on an onslaught of change to the banking industry, with banks becoming more convenient and consumer-friendly through mobile strategies, according to an article from Business Insider. The article says banks have become more competitive in order to stay ahead of other financial institutions. Currently, the mobile-banking user base is expected to grow 18% each year until reaching more than 1 billion users by 2017. By the end of this year, 590 million consumers will be using the technology."

USAA launches voice command mobile banking
"USAA members can now ask their iPhone how much they spent on groceries last month or tell it to pay the mortgage on Thursday. It's all done through voice commands that the financial institution's new software not only can hear and understand, but act upon. USAA has embedded Nuance's voice recognition service known as Nina into its iPhone app for mobile banking."

Survey: 75% comfortable with mobile banking
"Mobile banking has been getting a lot of press lately. Just last week, Hawaii-based American Savings Bank announced that adoption of their newly-introduced remote deposit capture mobile feature had exceeded all expectations. Juniper research recently published figures showing that the number of consumers using tablets to pay bills will soar between now and 2017, and mobile document capture software firm Mitek revealed 12 million Americans have now deposited more than $40 billion into bank accounts using mobile apps."

What will banks do to lure more people to online banking?
"The excitement around online banking is fading. After four years of rapid growth, banks are seeing only a trickle of new customers using their online services. As a result, consumers can expect more incentives as banks try to move more people out of the branches and away from the ATMs and instead deal with them through their computers and cellphones."

Mobile Banking Plays Key Role in #1 Factor for Customer Loyalty According to Yodlee Interactive Survey
"Banking convenience dominates all options amongst reasons to stay with banks, according to a new study conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of Yodlee Interactive. With the convenience of online and mobile banking, more customers are utilizing these services, while banks are responding by reducing the number of physical branches. This survey was conducted among 2,219 Americans (ages 18+) between February 28 and March 4, 2013."

Device, Channel And Security Choices Featured At Mobile Banking & Commerce Summit
"The 2013 Mobile Banking & Commerce Summit, hosted by American Banker and Bank Technology News, will shine on a spotlight on the next generation of mobile banking applications and recent advances in mobile commerce and payments. The event will take place June 3-5, 2013 at the InterContinental Miami Hotel in Florida."

Does JPMorgan Plus Apple Equal a Mobile-Banking Home Run?
"Banking is going mobile. The largest U.S. banks have been fairly quick to adopt the new technology and are reaping the benefits as millions of users flock to mobile interfaces. JPMorgan Chase sports one of the best-received mobile banking platforms. Despite being a relatively small portion of the bank's overall operation, its ability to innovate new mobile products and efficiently serve more customers is good news for investors. In this video, Motley Fool banking analysts Matt Koppenheffer and David Hanson tell investors why this recent trend benefits JPMorgan, as well as tech giant Apple."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 15

The Debate Around Responsive Design in Mobile Banking
"Responsive web design — a method of designing and developing websites such that they display well on a range of devices — is a seductive concept, especially for banks that struggle to maintain mobile banking apps for iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Windows devices. The ideal is the company has one set of code, one product to manage and it's set, no matter what smartphones and tablets customers are using. The reality is not so simple, and a debate is going on in the industry around how useful responsive design is, and whether or not it can replace native apps."

Mobile Banking Without Apps
"Eric Bangerter, an executive with a $1.6 billion institution in Wisconsin, explains why the risks associated with mobile apps led his team to opt for using a Web-based platform for mobile banking instead. Bangerter, vice president of e-commerce and Internet services for UW Credit Union in Madison, Wis., says many U.S. banking institutions have too quickly jumped onto the mobile-application bandwagon. Apps pose risks for users, and unforeseen authentication challenges for the institutions that offer them, he says in an interview with Information Security Media Group."

FIS Demonstrates the Latest Mobile Innovations that Are Supporting More than 20 Million Users at FinovateSpring 2013
"Dominating the mobile financial services market through the support of more than 20 million consumers, FIS™ (NYSE: FIS), the world’s largest provider of banking and payments technology, announces it will be showcasing its latest mobile innovation, the FIS Mobile Wallet with Cardless Cash Access, at FinovateSpring 2013 in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 14. The FIS Mobile Wallet is a white-labeled, cloud-based mobile payment and offer redemption solution that allows financial institutions to fully brand and manage the customer experience, while offering consumers convenience and best-in-class security."

Alamo FCU to debut concierge banking
"Alamo Federal Credit Union is introducing concierge banking to San Antonio. If any customer is interested in a car loan, mortgage or any other product the credit union is offering, Alamo FCU will send a representative out to the person’s home, office or coffee shop. 'Most banks have invested heavily in expensive headquarters and facilities with their customer’s money. Alamo FCU is investing in superior service and dividends for really busy people,' says AFCU President Max Villaronga."

KOBIL Technologies Selects Security Professional Malloy as Director of Business Development
"KOBIL Technologies, Inc. a KOBIL Group Company and leader in Secure Payment Technology announced it has appointed Donald Malloy as Director of Business Development. Malloy has more than 20 years' experience in the Security and Payment industry and is responsible for building the business in the Americas for KOBIL Technologies in the area of Mobile Banking and online Security. His primary focus will be to gain new partners in the area of Banking and IT security with the objective to position joint products on the market. Don spent more than 7 years developing the Display Card business with NagraID Security and prior to that was Business Development and Marketing Manager for Secure Smart Card ICs for both Phillips Semiconductors and Infineon Technologies."

Financial Matters: Banking on the go
"Bankers hours aren't what they used to be, and they don't need to be. eCommerce Manager Marilyn Lamb talked about how you can track your banking with BayPort Credit Union's Banking on the Go."

International Mobile Banking Updates - May 14

Mobile banking apps to be tried on Everest
"Mountaineers Horacio Galanti and Horacio Cunietti have commenced a unique Himalayan expedition to summit Everest to mark the 60th anniversary of its first ascent. The expedition will also push the boundaries of mobile technology in extreme environments and help in the recovery of debris left behind on the world’s highest peak. While on their expedition, the duo are expected to subject Standard Chartered’s Breeze mobile banking apps to the rigors of some of the most challenging environments known by attempting to trade stocks and transfer funds during their journey."

Mobile money accelerates financial inclusion
"The volatile economic environment which has prevailed in Zimbabwe over the past decade largely contributed to the failure of telecoms and banking institutions to adopt mobile banking. But over the past year there has been a foray by telecommunication and banking institutions to establish mobile banking platforms. Examples of mobile banking products that have been launched include: Kingdom Bank’s Cellcard, Tetrad’s eMali, Econet Wireless’ Ecocash; Cabs Bank’s Textacash, Interfin Bank’s Cybercash and CBZ Bank’s mobile banking, among others."

Corporation Bank launches app for iPad, Android
"City-based Corporation Bank had launched an app for iPad and Android. The Bank recently had come out with a special mobile banking app through Android and iOS. This app can be downloaded free from app store for iOS and Google Play for Android phones and tablets. The bank is one of the first public sector banks to introduce transaction-based banking in tablet PCs and iPads."

Central Bank calls for tight security in mobile banking
"Bank of Uganda has urged banks to ensure that they operate a secure and robust mobile banking platform to protect customers’ mobile bank accounts. 'A number of banks are now offering mobile banking products. It is in light of this that I re-iterate that every new product comes with its attendant risks. It is imperative that potential risks are identified and appropriate mitigation measures developed,' Ben Sekabira, the acting executive director supervision, Bank of Uganda, said."

Valimo Offers over One Million Tele2 Norway’s Mobile Users Easy to Use Strong Authentication, Mobile ID and Legally Binding Electronic Signature
"Valimo, a leading solution provider for mobile user authentication and digital signature software, announces that Tele2 Norway, a major European mobile operator, has selected its Mobile ID authentication service platform. The Valimo solution will offer over one million Tele2 subscribers in Norway the opportunity to securely access services that require strong, two-factor authentication, such as internet banking or e-government applications, using their mobile phone to generate a legally-binding electronic signature. As a first step, this new service will enable highly secure and legally binding log-in for online and mobile banking with four major banks in Norway."

Kenyan mobile innovation hard to export
"Kenya's mobile banking innovation may prove difficult to export. The African country has led the way with an SMS-based payment service called M-Pesa, which launched in eastern India last month.The government's push to give all Indians the right to banking access bodes well. But financial regulations and fierce competition may mean M-Pesa in India will face higher hurdles than its Kenyan role model."

Capitec banking app on its way
"Capitec says its dedicated banking app will be coming near the end of its current financial year (February 2014), and will be designed to run on both smart and feature phones. This follows the recent launch of Absa‘s banking app on 10 April 2013 – the last of South Africa’s so-called “big banks” out the door with a dedicated mobile application. However, Capitec told BusinessTech that it does not feel pressured by the competition to released a specialised banking app for smartphones, indicating further that its digital plans differ from those of its competitors."

E-banking survey reveals surge in mobile banking
"Online research specialist Columinate has released the results of the second annual Internet Banking SITEisfaction survey, one of the most comprehensive reports on customers' usage and perceptions of e-banking in South Africa. The survey quizzed over 1,400 South African e-bankers on their online banking habits and attitudes, and revealed several interesting trends. Henk Pretorius, Columinate CEO, explains that the survey is important as it provides insights into one of the fastest changing areas of customer banking."

Mobile and Alternative Payments in Mexico
"The Mexican consumer financial services landscape is in the midst of great change, driven by the confluence of technological innovation, innovative forms of branch expansion, regulatory changes in consumer deposit accounts and bank cards, and a strong push to facilitate mobile banking and payments. Indeed, major banks and telecommunications companies, most notably Telcel, have launched mobile banking and payments platforms that we expect to gain significant traction in 2013. At stake is the transformation of the Mexican banking system--from remittances to redefining branch banking--which can address longstanding financial inclusion disparities by reaching tens of millions of consumers heretofore unable to participate in formal banking services."

Bell and RBC strike deal to launch a mobile payment service, will be available “by the end of the year”
"Mobile payments in Canada are slowly increasing in popularity and will gain even more traction this summer. Rogers recently teamed up with CIBC to launch ‘suretap’, and Bell announced a partnership with RBC this morning. The new mobile payment solution will only be available for RBC customers who download the RBC mobile banking app, plus have a compatible Bell smartphone. The mobile payment option will be included into the current RBC Mobile banking app, not a standalone app, and will appear on the homescreen menu. The app will allow users to purchase small ticket items (debit or credit) from their smartphone."

HSBC seeks balance between mobile payments, Hong Kong branch network
"The increased popularity of mobile payments in Hong Kong has pushed HSBC to invest in related technology, but the bank said it would not stop expanding its branch network. Diana Cesar, head of retail banking and wealth management at HSBC in Hong Kong, said the lender would strike a balance between different banking services, even as mobile banking emerged as a growth area. In the first quarter, average monthly HSBC mobile banking logins increased more than 60 per cent from last year, Cesar said at the launch of a wealth management app."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 12

Study: mobile banking apps key to bank loyalty
"Add mobile banking to ATMs as a major channel for cultivating bank customer loyalty. According to a study from Yodlee Interactive, a developer of financial mobile apps, one-third of those who use mobile banking name it as a reason why they stay with their bank."

DeMarrais: FDIC tips for safe mobile banking
"When's the last time you went into a bank? For many of us, trips to a local bank were once near the top of our weekly to-do list, but technology has changed that dramatically, allowing us to do most of our banking from the convenience of home or office whenever it suits us. Banker's hours? They're no longer an issue when you combine direct deposit, ATMs and online banking. Bank visits have been limited largely to opening accounts, applying for loans, resolving disputes or looking for a calendar."

Federal Reserve Board Survey Shows Growth in Mobile Banking and Payments
"Americans are increasingly using their mobile phones to access bank accounts, credit cards, and other financial accounts, according to the Federal Reserve Board’s latest report on mobile financial services. As of November 2012, 28 percent of all mobile phone users and 48 percent of smartphone users had used mobile banking in the past 12 months. This represents a significant increase from 21 percent in December 2011 for mobile phone users and 42 percent for smartphone users. While relatively less common, the use of mobile phones to make payments at the point of sale increased threefold over the same period, as 6 percent of smartphone owners reported using their phone to make a purchase."

Few Bank Shoppers Say Mobile Check Deposit Is A ‘Must Have’
"Within the last two years, more and more banks and credit unions have begun offering mobile check deposit on their mobile banking platforms. Today, there are 137 institutions listed on FindABetterBank.com and 33% offer mobile check deposit (see table below). Many banks and credit unions plan to roll out the service within the next 12 months."

ACLEDA Bank, Fiserv win tech implementation award
"Financial technology company Fiserv and Cambodian bank ACLEDA have won an Asian Banker Technology Implementation Award in the category "best mobile banking project." The award recognizes a collaboration by Fiserv and ACLEDA to extend the ACLEDA Unity mobile banking and payments service to new, untapped consumer segments using Mobiliti Reach from Fiserv."

Understanding Consumer Adoption of Mobile Banking in 2013
"It came a lot faster than anyone predicted: Mobile banking is growing so quickly that it is even overtaking traditional online banking. Just last week, the second largest bank in the United States, Bank of America, announced that its customers are logging into the bank’s mobile platform more than its online platform. It’s quite possibly the most significant innovation across the industry since the ATM."

Mobile Banking Plays Critical Role In Customer Loyalty While Tablet Apps Lag Behind
"A lack of banking apps optimized for tablets leaves consumers to resort to a cruder mobile web experience. According to a study from Yodlee Interactive, mobile banking may keep loyalty high while physical branches continue their decline. 71% of mobile bankers are either satisfied or very satisfied with their bank’s mobile and web offerings. One in three of those who use mobile banking now view their mobile banking experience as a reason why they stay with their bank."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 9

Infographic: Mobile Banking Critical to Customer Loyalty
"The findings of new study conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of Yodlee Interactive shows that banking convenience “dominates” all options amongst reasons to stay with banks. With the convenience of online and mobile banking, more customers are utilizing these services, while banks are responding by reducing the number of physical branches."

Banking by Voice Gets Test From U.S. Bank
"U.S. Bank (USB_) is testing a voice-banking service that enables customers to check account balances, review transactions and pay bills solely through voice activation. For now, U.S. Bank is limiting the app test campaign to its FlexPerks Travel Rewards program and to its employees. The voice-activated technology comes from Nuance Nina Mobile, and is now limited to iPhone and Android phones."

Intuit Debuts Mobile Banking App for Android Tablets
"Intuit Financial Services has released a tablet banking app for the Android operating system. The new app lets customers check balances, transfer funds, pay bills and find branches and ATMs, Intuit (INTU) said Tuesday. The app works on all seven- and ten-inch tablets and can be downloaded through the Google or Amazon app stores. Sharon Credit Union in Massachusetts has begun offering the app to its customers, Intuit said in the news release."

Four Sure-fire Tips for Mobile Banking Security
"I’m writing this dispatch from the Pacific Coast, where I’ve just seen a fabulous-yet-disturbing documentary at the Newport Beach Film Festival. It’s called “Terms and Conditions May Apply,” and director Cullen Hoback’s movie takes a chilling look at how vulnerable we all are in this digital society. That is, “free” services such as Google, Facebook and Twitter know much more about us than you might think — and they’re holding onto that information indefinitely. They also share it at will with federal espionage services, thanks to the dense legalese written into online terms of service since 9/11 and the Patriot Act."

A year of successful mobile banking
"In just one year, BOV Mobile, the mobile banking service for smartphones introduced by Bank of Valletta, has attracted more than 11,500 customers who have collectively used their phones more than half a million times to make payments, transfer funds and to monitor their accounts. 'We view mobile banking as a natural extension of our overall channel strategy. Mobile combines the best features of online banking, the convenience of an ATM, and the responsiveness of text messaging all in the palm of your hand,' chief operations officer Michael Galea said."

Banks Must Think Differently About Customer Experience In A Branchless Digital Environment
"Banks have offered online accounts for years, but new digital banking technologies, such as mobile remote deposit capture, and a new generation of young customers are driving increased interest in digital bank accounts. Customers in their 20s and 30s have been quick to embrace mobile and online capabilities that are steadily making branches obsolete -- at least for day-to-day banking needs. The fast-paced adoption of mobile remote deposit capture to deposit checks is a recent example of this trend. "The advent of mobile remote deposit capture is eliminating the No. 1 reason for branch visits," says Teresa Epperson, a managing director at AlixPartners, a consulting firm."

How Can Businesses Help Consumers Bank Better?
"It's not easy to pay mobile phone bills with cash. Yet, 24 million households are under-banked and 91% of the underbanked have mobile phones and smartphones, according to the FDIC. With numbers like these, it makes sense for consumer businesses such as mobile carriers to help customers bank up, says Plastyc CEO Patrice Peyret. At FinovateSpring 2013 in San Francisco, Peyret will demo a new banking service platform and discuss practical insights for consumer businesses that want to provide smart, simple banking services to their customers."

American Savings Bank Dials Up Mobile Deposits and Sets Adoption Record
"Monitise plc (LSE: MONI) today announced that Hawaii-based American Savings Bank is experiencing phenomenal user adoption since the launch of its mobile banking and payments solution. As part of Monitise's Bank Anywhere mobile solution, American Savings Bank is the first Hawaiian bank to deploy mobile remote deposit capture, resulting in mobile deposits skyrocketing by 40 percent in March. In a mere four months since deployment, many of American Savings Bank's active online banking customers are already using the Bank Anywhere services developed and deployed by Monitise."

International Mobile Banking Updates - May 8

Online and mobile banking: your rights when something goes wrong
"Nationwide customers were left without access to some banking services twice last week due to IT failures. Online and mobile banking was unavailable for several hours and angry customers took to social media sites to vent their frustrations. But Nationwide isn't the only provider to have been plagued by technical faults. Last year thousands of RBS customers were completely cut off from their bank accounts for several days."

Two million Kiwis now using online banking
"More than two million New Zealanders now use internet banking, an increase of nearly 18% over the past four years. Approximately 2.05 million Kiwis use online banking, up from 1.74 million in 2009, according to data released by Statistics New Zealand. While younger generations are the most likely to transact online, internet banking is popular among all age groups."

Africa: Nigeria Stumbles After Kenya
"More people in Africa use their mobile phone to bank than in any other region in the world. The continent's banking revolution began in March 2007 when Kenyan telecoms operator Safaricom launched M-Pesa, a service that allows users to send, receive and save money using a cellphone. Since then M-Pesa has spread to Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. Mobile banking now exists in 33 African countries, according to GSMA, a trade association."

Fear and loathing of m-banking
"There was nothing unusual about that morning, until on my way to work that group walking on the road caught my eye. I had seen them many times before but probably not noticed them this way. Whether on foot or cramped together in a vehicle, they prefer travelling in groups every morning to their respective workplaces. They carry their lunches in cloth potlis or plastic thailis and come from villages and hometowns far away to earn livelihood. And they can, perhaps, be clustered into one defined group - they are a part of India’s significant migrant population, of which many are also unbanked."

Subscribers warm up to new cellphone banking application
"Six months ago, Jane Adhiambo Achieng walked into a local Kenyan bank with the hope of getting a loan for her small grocery business. After providing all the paperwork and after weeks of back and forth between her and bank officials, she was turned down. 'They just told me I don't qualify. My income was too little,' said 42-year-old Achieng, who was asking for some $250, about half her monthly turnover, to expand her fruit and vegetable stall in the Kenyan capital. But in early March, she applied for the same amount through a different source and got the money in a matter of minutes."

Citibank Bahrain steps up online security...
"The bank said 'dynamic multi-factor authentication' on online and mobile banking platforms comes in the form of one-time pins (OTP). Being offered through the bank's Internet banking (Citibank online-CBOL) and mobile banking (Citi Mobile) facility - the new one-time pin service sends a unique number to customers in the form of a mobile text message every time they log on to CBOL and Citi Mobile. Clients can perform multiple transactions within each Internet session."

Mobile Banking For The Unbanked
"In sub-Sahara Africa, more than 80% of people have no access to traditional financial services. This has been one of the great challenges in fighting poverty in South Africa. Given the lack of developed infrastructure in many parts of Africa, how is it possible to provide millions of unbanked people with basic banking services? Standard Bank of South Africa has found the answer! Standard Bank discovered that one of the biggest impediments to opening a new account for many of these people was their lack of ability to provide proof of residence. However, at the same time, Standard Bank also found that a large percentage of unbanked people had access to mobile phones!"

Mobile Banking Updates - May 7

Convenience No. 1 Factor In Customer Loyalty for Banks, Study Finds
"Customers want convenience more than any other attribute from their banking experience, according to a new online survey by Harris Interactive for Yodlee Interactive, an online banking solutions provider. The survey of 2,219 banking customers found that 63% of those surveyed said they stay with their current because of convenience. Customer service and low fees ranked next behind convenience, with 48% and 42% of the vote, respectively. And 33% of the respondents who use mobile banking said that their mobile banking experience is one of the reasons they stay with their banks."

Fiserv Names Jim Tobin Senior Vice President and General Manager, Mobile Solutions
"Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), a leading global provider of financial services technology solutions, today announced that Jim Tobin has joined the company as senior vice president and general manager, Mobile Solutions, Digital Channels. In this role, Tobin will be responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day oversight of the market-leading Mobiliti™ mobile banking and payments solution from Fiserv. Mobiliti currently supports mobile banking, alerting and payments services for more than 1,000 financial institutions and millions of consumers in North America, Asia, the Pacific, the Middle East and Europe."

Mobile remote deposit capture adoption exceeds bank's expectations
"American Savings Bank is the first Hawaiian bank to introduce mobile remote deposit capture, a feature whereby depositing money into an account can be done simply by taking a photo of a check. Rick Robel, Executive Vice President of Operations at American Savings Bank, says that customer adoption of the mobile feature has "exceeded all expectations". Within the first month of the November 2012 launch, the bank achieved first year adoption goals and within two and half months their two-year adoption goals had been met. In March, 2013, mobile deposits with the bank soared by 40%."

Augmented Reality in FS - got your goggles?
"‘Mobile banking’ is not a very precise term. Today, we know it as meaning using your mobile phone for banking. However, back in the late 1990s, all that it meant was SMS banking. If your bank was particularly advanced, it may also have meant a WAP-based mobile banking service. It has only been since the launch of smartphones in the mid-2000s, that ‘mobile banking’ has come to mean a browser- or mobile app-based banking service."

Mobile Services Compared: Which Banks Are Setting the Trend?
"According to comScore, there were 133.7 million Americans with smartphones in February 2013, up from 104 million one year ago. As smartphones become necessities for Americans, banks have increased their focus on mobile banking, especially mobile banking applications. It has never been easier for bank customers to manage their money on-the-go. But, not every bank is able to deliver a feature-packed mobile banking experience as others might. With time, more and more consumers will consider mobile banking features in their decisions to choose a new bank."

Mercator Banking Channels Report: Mobile Banking Deployment: Partnering and Outsourcing
"In new research, Mobile Banking Deployment: Partnering and Outsourcing, Mercator Advisory Group reviews how the pace of innovation in mobility has caused financial institutions to consider new ways of bringing new mobile banking products to market efficiently and effectively."

Security Solution Provider Arxan to Lead Panel Discussion on Protecting Mobile Banking and Financial Apps at the FS-ISAC & BITS Annual Summit 2013
"Arxan Technologies, the leading provider of software security solutions that protects the global App Economy, announced today that Vince Arneja, Arxan's vice president of product management, will lead a panel session on emerging mobile application and risks in the banking and financial services market at the Financial Services - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC) & BITS Annual Summit 2013. The FS-ISAC & BITS Annual Summit 2013 takes place April 29 - May 1, 2013 in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, and brings together more than 500 information security professionals in the financial services market, providing an industry forum for collaboration on critical security threats facing the financial services sector."

SAP’s Mobile Banking Innovation Gets Nod for "Outstanding Technology Implementation" at The Asian Banker Technology Implementation Awards 2013
"SAP, the global leader in mobile messaging and mobile commerce services, today announced that together with PT Bank CIMB Niaga Tbk (CIMB Niaga), both companies were recognized with the "Outstanding Technology Implementation Award" at The Asian Banker Technology Implementation Awards 2013. The award recognizes the collaboration between SAP and CIMB Niaga in implementing GoMobile, using innovative mobile banking technology to allow users easy, reliable and convenient access to various bank applications 24/7, through any mobile handset running on any mobile platform, including iOS, Android, BlackBerry, J2ME (old Simbian), SMS, USSD, and WAP. The project involved the development and deploying of a groundbreaking mobile application that meets the increasing demand for mobile banking in Indonesia, without users having to worry about the kind or platform of their mobile devices regardless of the network they are using."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 5

Wells Fargo puts mobile banking at center of new marketing campaign
"Wells Fargo has launched a multichannel marketing campaign that aims to educate consumers on the benefits of mobile banking. The Wells Fargo “Done” campaign includes television, online and mobile components and highlights multiple areas of the financial service’s mobile banking features, such as mobile deposit and transfers. The campaign is meant to show how mobile banking is a natural extension of what consumers already do on their mobile devices."

Mobile banking spurs growth at Michigan First Credit Union
"Michigan First Credit Union is looking for a few good employees, 14 right now to be exact. The Lathrup Village-based financial institution is looking for everything from tellers to human resources professionals to add to its staff of 225 people. However, technology pros are in especially high demand for the credit union. About a third of its new positions have some sort of tech angle, such as software developer or IT professional."

In 2017 one in four tablet users will be paying bills via their device
"With tablet adoption and user acceptance of ‘push’ mobile banking on the rise, it is thought that by 2017, one in four tablet users will be paying bills via their device, according to a new report from Juniper Research. The report suggests that these factors will drive users of transactional tablet banking services to almost 200 million in 2017; representing around 19 per cent of total mobile banking customers in 2017, as opposed to nine per cent in 2013. It is also noted in the report that the adoption of bill presentment and payment (MBPP) transactional banking by tablet users will be higher than mobile handset users, particularly in developed areas where there is a higher adoption rate of tablet devices."

Mobile Banking Plays Key Role in #1 Factor for Customer Loyalty, According to Yodlee Interactive Survey
"Banking convenience dominates all options amongst reasons to stay with banks, according to a new study conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of Yodlee Interactive. With the convenience of online and mobile banking, more customers are utilizing these services, while banks are responding by reducing the number of physical branches. This survey was conducted among 2,219 Americans (ages 18+) between February 28 and March 4, 2013."

Bank of America to Offer New Mobile Banking Features
"Bank of America’s mobile banking user base of 12.5 million, rapidly growing at a pace of 55,000 new users per week, can expect several new features to come to the bank’s mobile banking applications. From May until the end of the year, Bank of America will roll out six new mobile banking features, which were first reported by American Banker."

BII REPORT: How Banking Is Going Mobile
"Over the years, retail banks have innovated to make personal banking more convenient and consumer-friendly. They've built sprawling branch networks, introduced credit cards, and developed automatic teller machines. In its latest evolution, banking is going mobile. With smartphones and tablets increasingly at the center of financial decisions — especially those of younger consumers — banks have to get their mobile strategies right. If they don't, they risk losing business to more mobile-savvy competitors, as well as tech companies like PayPal, that are developing their own payment and personal finance solutions."

Mobile banking expected to grow 18% annually through 2017
"The evolution of technology has brought on an onslaught of change to the banking industry, with banks becoming more convenient and consumer-friendly through mobile strategies, according to an article from Business Insider. The article says banks have become more competitive in order to stay ahead of other financial institutions. Currently, the mobile-banking user base is expected to grow 18% each year until reaching more than 1 billion users by 2017. By the end of this year, 590 million consumers will be using the technology."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 2

U.S. Bank Testing Mobile App Voice Commands
"U.S. Bancorp has developed voice recognition software that will let customers handle banking tasks by speaking commands into their mobile device. 'I could ask, 'What is my balance?'' and listen to the answer, says Dominic Venturo, chief innovation officer for retail payments solutions at U.S. Bank. U.S. Bank developed the new voice app with Nuance, which sells mobile voice recognition software called "Nina." U.S. Bank's app understands spoken requests for information on annual percentage rates, cash back on purchases, and fees. Users speak to a microphone icon that appears in a corner of the bank's mobile app."

Boulder Valley Credit Union Introduces Tyfone Mobile Banking Financial Services
"Boulder Valley Credit Union (BVCU, https://www.bvcu.org), serving more than 21,000 members and over $300 million in assets across Colorado, today announced the availability of Tyfone's (www.tyfone.com) mobile financial services to enable next-generation mobile banking services for its member customers. The partnership stems from the appreciation of Tyfone's mobile banking, security vision and the strategic value that Tyfone provides BVCU members. Moreover, with an integrated path to enhanced strong ID authentication mobile security and NFC contactless payments, BVCU can now offer its members a convenient, secure and integrated mobile banking solution."

Consumer Satisfaction With Banks Improves Significantly For First Time In Years
"Big banks make significant improvements in J.D. Power and Associates’ annual consumer satisfaction study. Regional and midsize banks still outperform their bigger brethren, but the gap is closing. Overall customer satisfaction with retail banks improved significantly from 2012, largely a result of improvements made by big banks, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2013 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study."

Over 50 Percent of Customers at Risk of Leaving Their Bank Finds Capgemini's World Retail Banking Report 2013
"Within the next six months, ten percent of retail banking customers surveyed globally will likely leave their bank and an additional 41 percent of customers say they are unsure if they will stay or go finds the tenth annual World Retail Banking Report 2013 (WRBR 2013) released today by Capgemini and Efma. To re-build the customer-bank relationship, opportunity exists for banks to become more customer-centric by leveraging vast amounts of customer data and by further developing mobile capabilities to create more personal interactions. The cornerstone of the WRBR 2013 is its extensive customer survey and Customer Experience Index (CEI)(1) which measures perceptions of 18,000 customers in 35 markets about the factors that matter most to them across channels, transactions and products."

Nationwide online and mobile banking services knocked out
"A technical glitch at Nationwide Building Society has left customers unable to use online and mobile banking services for several hours today. All Net and mobile banking has been down since this morning, while incoming and outgoing Faster Payments are experiencing delays. In a statement on its Web site, Nationwide says 'We are making every effort to restore service as quickly as possible. We apologise for any inconvenience this will cause you.' Meanwhile, customers taking to Twitter to complain about the outage are being told to use ATMs or visit branches if they want to check their balances or carry out transactions but no timescale has been given for possible fix."

ACI Releases Mobile Banking System
"ACI Worldwide (ACIW) has released a mobile-banking program for the iPhone and Android smartphones. ACI Architect Mobile Banking lets banks manage their customers' desktop, mobile and tablet banking with a single set of administrative tools, ACI said Tuesday. It provides users secure browsing, downloadable applications and text banking. The system can also be customized for individual users for more targeted messaging, ACI said."

Mobile Tools, High Fees Quash Demand For Overdraft Protection
"A combination of mobile banking and high fees and conspired to lower consumer demand for overdraft protection services. In 2010 and 2011, banks saw a decline in revenue from overdraft fees because the Federal Reserve changed the rules about how banks can charge for “overdraft protection.” However, in 2012 banks turned the corner and reported higher fee revenue from overdraft protection. Why the increase? Slowly, banks have been raising overdraft-related fees like insufficient funds fees and overdraft protection transfer fees. But they may be hitting a ceiling for three consumer-driven reasons:"

Refundo Chief Executive Officer to Present at FinovateSpring 2013
"Refundo, a national provider of financial services to the underserved, announced today that it has been selected to present and demo its mobile banking technology live at FinovateSpring 2013. FinovateSpring is a demo-based conference for innovative startups and established companies in the fields of banking and financial technology, and will be held May 14-15, 2013 at the Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco. 'We're honored to have been invited to debut our mobile app at FinovateSpring 2013,' said Refundo CEO, Roger Chinchilla. 'We can't think of a better event to create awareness that technology is the gateway to accessing the financially underserved. Each year, the people who can least afford it pay billions of dollars in junk fees because their needs aren't being met by traditional banks.'"

International Mobile Banking Updates - May 1

Mobile Banking Outpaces Traditional Banking in Kenya
"Kenya’s mobile networks last year collectively held more in deposits than the country’s largest bank. The telecoms regulator CCK reported the mobile networks held Sh226 billion ($2.70 billion) in deposits at the end of last year while the largest commercial bank held Sh223 billion ($2.66 billion). The report said the number of mobile money transfer subscribers grew to 21.1 million from 19.3 million in the previous period, a growth of 9.4 percent."

Absa banking app sees impressive uptake
"Absa‘s banking app, which launched on 10 April 2013, has already been downloaded over 50,000 times, the bank has announced. The bank’s app is the last to market out of SA’s big four banks, though according to Absa, it is the first native financial services app for smartphones and tablets in South Africa that is available for both retail and business customers alike. Customers can link multiple devices to a single account or conversely multiple accounts can be linked to a single device."

Mobile commerce is at an inflection point: Bipin P Singh, CEO, Mobikwik
"What kind of services does Mobikwik offer? Mobikwik is a digital (mobile/web) closed wallet services provider. Adding money to the wallet allows users to make payments for products/services in one click via the mobile app, via the website or via a SMS or by dialing a number. Mobikwik can helps to make payments for things like recharging mobiles and pay bills in India across - prepaid and post-paid mobiles, television and DTH, data cards, broadband/landline phones, electricity, gas and insurance. A vast majority of our wallet users use the mobile (SMS, IVR or Android App) for making their payments. Mobikwik currently boasts of about two million customers and adding nearly 200,000 users every month and and do 30,000 transactions per day, most of them via the mobile."

Mukuru launches mobile prepaid debit card in South Africa
"Mukuru.com has just announced the launch of a new cellphone based debit card in South Africa. It is something like mobile banking services locally, except this is optimised for existing Mukuru services in addition to using the card for regular banking and point of sale. The new card is backed by Standard Bank. According to a video posted on YouTube, the new product addresses the need by migrants to have regular bank accounts in South Africa. Migrants, apparently, find it hard to ‘open’ a bank account in SA, which then makes it difficult to transfer money securely to relatives in the greater Southern Africa region."

Mobile Banking Lessons from the Developing World
"Mobile banking adoption is growing far more rapidly in developing parts of the world, such as Africa, than it is in the US. What can US banks learn from mobile banking usage in the developing world? Plenty, according to Steven Lewis, director of banking and capital markets at Ernst & Young. Mobile banking is offering many convenience to US customers, including remote deposit of checks (even if it’s not free) from the comfort of home. But saving US customers that 10-minute drive to the branch pales in comparison to the effect mobile banking is having on customers that didn’t have bank accounts before mobile phones existed. Kenya, for example, has a very limited branch network that was not useful to most customers."

Banks in a rush for mobile apps
"IT WILL limit cash heists and save money — but cut margins from fees. Banks have had a busy April, with some taking their first plunge into the increasingly crowded pool of mobile banking applications. Already, more than 13% of South Africans access banking services on their phones and tablets, according to research company FinScope — something that is both good and bad for the banks."

Apps disappoint despite vast tech spend
"The problems consumers have encountered with mobile banking applications may inform the financial services industry as it looks to produce its own investment and superannuation apps. According to BanterMob director of mobile marketing and strategy Kelly Slessor, the wealth creation sector is not as advanced as the transactional banking sector. 'Most of the apps are superannuation calculators and they don't offer a great user experience, because they are not going to be used very regularly,' she said. A new report by mobile marketing specialist BanterMob revealed that banking apps are falling short of consumer expectations."

Beware the sting in smartphone banking
"If you've recently discovered the convenience of paying bills on a smartphone, you're not alone. Australians are embracing mobile banking at a cracking pace. About 6 million people manage their finances through a mobile telephone, according to a recent report from the Market Intelligence Strategy Centre. For all the time saved by banking through digital channels, however, this boom comes with some costs. You may notice this most if you're someone who does a lot of their banking at a branch or through automatic teller machines. As this week's graph shows, the value of online transactions with the country's biggest bank, the Commonwealth, has surged almost tenfold in the past decade. The other major banks experienced a similar trend."

Standard Bank completes migration of another 3.5m South Africans onto SAP banking system
"Standard Bank in South Africa has just completed moving 3.5 million customers onto a mobile-enabled banking system that now allows a total of 7 million people to quickly bank. The AccessPoint system allows anyone to register for a Standard Bank account in about ten minutes through street agents in poor townships, malls and other places. Standard Bank pays AccessAgents a basic wage plus a commission for each customer they sign up."

Google Testing Replica of M-Pesa, Kenya's Mobile Banking Solution
"How is a third world tech country paving the way when it comes to the future of mobile banking? 90 percent of Kenyans use their phones to access the internet and M-Pesa is bringing mobile banking to the nation. Bloomberg's Jon Erlichman explains."

The World's Largest Mobile Pay Network Is ... in Kenya?
"When it comes to mobile banking, Kenyans are the early adopters. About 90 percent of the people in the developing nation access the Internet using mobile phones. Combine that with the popularity of mobile banking service M-Pesa, and Kenya is leading the way. Bloomberg's Jon Erlichman reports."