International Mobile Banking Updates - Aug 20

Western Union expands mobile banking in Africa
"Western Union is growing its mobile banking function in Africa, aiming to complement the 27,000 physical agent locations spread across 50 countries. The company’s main focus is now on expanding its digital transaction channels, a good example being integrating with additional mobile networks and increasing the use of prepaid cards when customers receive money."

Cabinet directs on regulation of mobile money transactions
"The Cabinet has directed the Ministry of Finance to amend the law regulating the financial institutions with the view of including regulations that govern Islamic banking and mobile money transactions. The regulation if passed will hold those responsible for money transfer businesses in cases of breach of contract or any dubious transaction. The new law will also regulate Islamic banking, thus widening the scope of customer choices in terms of banking."

ENTREVESTOR: Dal team to unveil banking app for teens
"After a long and hectic summer, a group of entrepreneurs from Dalhousie University will unveil their financial app Purchext to angel investors in Toronto Tuesday as the final segment of the gruelling Next 36 course. Purchext is a company formed at Dalhousie last spring and its founders — Cam McDonald, Zachary Levy, and Daniel Bartek — took the project to the Next 36 program, a three-month academic/mentoring program for undergraduate entrepreneurs. The graduation from the program includes pitches to angel investors."

Canada’s Desjardins financial cooperative pushes NFC offering
"Canada is seeing a fresh push to promote near field communication (NFC) services after Canadian cooperative financial group Desjardin signed a deal with mobile money solutions provider Monitise and a joint venture with the nation’s three largest mobile operators. Under the terms of the partnership, Monitise will provide the NFC-enabled mobile payment application; the technology will allow Desjardins members and clients to make purchases at Canadian retailers using their smartphone."

Monitise sees revenues surge as mobile banking takes off
"In our technology focussed world the mobile phone has become like an extra super-sensory organ to most of us, and nowadays that usually means a smartphone. Smartphone penetration is around 55% of the market and is expected to reach 80% by the end of 2015. We play games on them, read the news, catch up with friends and tweet our latest thoughts to all who care to listen. And now growing numbers of us are using them to pay our bills, shift money between our accounts and take advantage of vouchers and customer offers."

Bank Millennium SA : Best Internet Bank in Poland according to Global Finance magazine
"Bank Millennium has yet again scored first in the category "Best Consumer Internet Bank in Poland". Also the mobile banking app for companies was recognised. The awards were given by Global Finance independent financial magazine. According to the jury's verdict Bank Millennium is the Best Consumer Internet Bank in Poland and is also Best in Mobile Banking for Corporate/Institutional in CEE. The competition organisers i.a. appreciated the product offering available online, the functionality and design of the new website as well as growth of the number of online banking customers."

Global Differences in the Mobile Web: Emerging Markets Lead the Way in M-Commerce, Mobile Banking and New Technologies
"Netbiscuits, the global leader in software solutions for adaptive web experiences, today published additional findings from its study into consumer behavior on the mobile web. The latest data, extracted from the Netbiscuits People's Web Report and featuring responses from 5,000 consumers, found that the starkest differences in mobile usage were between developed and emerging markets. Deep-diving into the differences between consumer expectations around the world, the new evaluation of the People's Web Report findings gives a more detailed insight into how our lives are shaped by mobile."

Online banking security company Entersekt, wins Frost and Sullivan Award
"Online banking security company Entersekt, has today been awarded the 2013 South African Frost and Sullivan Award for Technology Leadership for its innovations in providing easy-to-use and secure mobile banking solutions. Transakt, as its app is called, offers an alternative method to online banking that claims to eliminate fraud and enhance transaction convenience of both the bank and customer. Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Lehlohonolo Mokenela notes that Entersekt has received accreditation from the world’s largest payments networks American Express, MasterCard, and Visa and is the first and only company in Africa to earn all three of these certifications."

Daily use of mobile banking in Korea up 10.2 pct in Q2
"The daily use of mobile banking in South Korea rose 10.2 percent in the second quarter from three months earlier on the back of the growing popularity of smartphones, the central bank said Thursday. Transactions by mobile banking or banking services accessed via wireless handsets were valued at 1.39 trillion won (US$1.24 billion) per day in the April-June period, compared with 1.26 trillion won three months earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK)."

Half of UK bank branches could close by 2020
"The increased use of online and mobile banking means that half of the UK’s building society and bank branches could close by 2020, a new report predicts. The Global Retail Banking report from Jones Lang LaSalle adds that the closures will be spurred on by increased use of debit and credit cards."