Mobile Banking Updates - June 26

App of the day: Barclays Mobile Banking review (Android)
"It makes the world go round but you can't buy love with it. It walks, it talks, it's the root of all evil, but all we want is dirty cash. The country has none, but fortunately banks do, and some of that filthy lucre goes into app development. Mother always said that if you look after the pennies, the pounds would look after themselves, and this app might just make that easier. Today, we're looking at Barclays Mobile Banking."

Banks Turn to Fees to Make Mobile Pay
"At the recent Mobile Banking Summit in Miami, a question bankers raised several times was, how do we make money off mobile banking? Mobile app development projects can cost $1 million to $5 million, and often boards and executive committees want to see some kind of return on investment before approving such projects."

Putting Digital ‘Tech Champs’ in Every Branch Location
"Hands-on demonstrations can convince wary consumers that digital banking tools are both safe and simple. Millions of consumers have gleefully jumped on the online and mobile banking bandwagon. But there are millions more who still haven’t. What’s holding them back? Among those yet to embrace modern, web-based banking channels, some admit they are intimidated by new technologies, while others say they distrust the security of internet-connected devices particularly for financial activities."

Mobile Banking Exec Tracey Weber to Leave Citi
"Tracey Weber, Bank Technology News' Mobile Banker of the Year for 2012, is planning to leave Citigroup at the end of June. The bank says she is leaving "to pursue other interests." (Weber was not available to comment.) Her position — head of the North America Internet and Mobile and Global Product team — will be filled by Melissa Stevens, a 15-year veteran of the bank."

Mobile banking gets smarter
"Dan Brower fished a much-awaited check from his mailbox but didn’t have time to swing by his bank’s branch. So the Kansas City resident fired up his two-week-old iPhone, and with just a flick of his finger — disappointment. Commerce Bank’s mobile banking application doesn’t accept deposits. 'It’s funny because with PayPal’s app, you can take a picture of your check and put it in your PayPal account,' Brower said. Mobile banking apps are widely available, they don’t all do the same things. A photo-based check deposit tool is coming soon to Commerce’s bank app."

TD Bank's Mobile Site, ATMs Running Again After Hour-Long Outage
"TD Bank (TD) is back up and running again after an internal glitch downed its mobile banking site and in-store ATMs Tuesday afternoon, temporarily impacting customers’ ability to withdraw cash and check their balances. A spokesperson for the Toronto-based bank confirmed the outage and said it was related to an internal system glitch, not a cyber attack like the one responsible for hitting TD's consumer website in March. The system went down around 3:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday and resurfaced about an hour later. While its-store computers were down, TD said it used a manual system to handle customer business."