Mobile Money Transfers to be Driven by Emerging Markets

"A report from Juniper Research has revealed that mobile money transfers will reach a total of 389 million users by 2018. The use of such services in Asian and African nations will drive this huge rise in usage, which initially sounds surprising until we dig deeper into the issue.

The key reason for this is that the banking systems in many of these nations are not highly developed or widely used. For example, in Tanzania only 17% of people have a bank account whilst more than 66% of the population own a mobile phone. Many networks are keen to exploit this, following the success of M-PESA’s mobile money transfer services in Kenya." Continue Reading

Mobile Banking Updates - July 21

Future Mobile Awards - Winners Announced for Mobile Commerce
"Companies at the forefront of new developments in Mobile Commerce have been honoured in this year’s Juniper Research Future Mobile Awards."

Ad Lab: Banking Billboards, Print Ads And Outdoor Galore
"Here are two more excellent examples further illustrating the powerful relationship between that can be forged between outdoor marketing messages and their environmental context. In the first example from Palmetto Bank, you have to look closely to realize that it is actually a branch entrance in disguise — visitors have to walk right through the bank’s mobile app (quite a metaphor, if you think about it)."

We're witnessing the fastest ever shift in banking
"This week we're celebrating 5 years of the Apple App store (see Wired's commentary.) The realization that in 5 years mobile and apps have had such a huge impact on banking, can not be understated. Of course, there were many in the financial services space that were massively skeptical of the iPhone and Apps when they first launched in 2007. My favorite quotes come from a January 14th, 2007 article on Bloomberg, that contain the following gems:"

Diebold working on cardless ATM project
"Smartphones could replace the plastic card when stopping at the automated teller machine. Diebold has begun fitting ATMs for Wintrust Financial Corp., based in Lake Forest, Ill., so customers can make cash withdrawals using a smartphone. The test project has Diebold working with Paydiant, a company that provides cloud-based mobile payment services for banks and merchants. Wintrust is working with Fidelity National Information Services on the pilot program."

Mobile Banking on the Rise
"Banking has gone mobile. With over half of all American adults, about 56%, sporting smart phones, banks and other financial management tools have quickly adapted their systems to be compatible, secure and easy to use on mobile devices. Many smart phone users have already made the change from traditional to mobile banking and according to Consultants at the Aite Group, the number of people banking on their phones will triple by the year 2016."

Banks struggle to keep up with mobile demand
"While banks all have a mobile banking app, their clients are still pushing for more and more mobile capabilities. So says Mary Monahan, executive vice president and research director for Javelin Strategy & Research, a California company that rates banks on their mobile offerings. She says that many tech-savvy customers still 'cannot open accounts via smartphone, make payments, or deposit checks by snapping photos of them.'"

Mobile Banking Updates - Mar 17

Mobile Deposit Combines the Old and New in Bank Technology
"Remote deposit capture (RDC), long tied to the PC and desktop scanner, has arrived at its ultimate destination -- anywhere, anytime check deposits through popular mobile banking capabilities and smartphones. By combining powerful technology trends and strong consumer demand with a traditional banking process, mobile deposit enables financial institutions banks to retain customers, prevent the fragmentation of customers’ banking relationships and, ultimately, forever change the bank’s relationship with its customers."

Onsite Coverage: Mobile Message at BAI is ‘Go Big or Go Home’
"What a change a year makes. The loud message at a morning session on mobile banking at the BAI Payments Connect conference in Phoenix is this: "Go big or go home." Mobile banking adoption now is occurring at a “dizzying rate,” said panelist Bob Hedges, a managing director at research firm AlixPartners. Before, AlixPartners had talked about mobile banking “nearing” a “tipping point” – but it’s there and well beyond that now, Hedges said at the Monday session."

Centier Bank Improves Banking Security with Mobile-based Card On/Off Support
"In an effort to increase mobile adoption and enhance customers' security options, Merrillville, Ind.-based Centier Bank has implemented new mobile banking functionality from Computer Services, Inc. (CSI) (OTCQX: CSVI) to allow its customers to better manage debit cards from their mobile devices. CSI's newest mobile application enhancement, referred to as Card On/Off, allows users to manually enable or disable the use of their debit card within the bank's mobile app in the event the card is lost or stolen."

Millennials embrace mobile banking
"Meryn Oswald is 23, just out of college and can’t remember the last time she was in a bank branch office. Her father, Jim Oswald, who’s executive vice president and chief lending officer for Affinity Bank of Pennsylvania, is amazed watching his daughter bank on her phone. This is one reason the Spring Township bank is exploring mobile banking."

Report: 1 billion mobile banking customers by 2017
"Bill payment from a tablet is, not surprisingly, on the rise. Analysts at Juniper Research said that growing acceptance of mobile banking coupled with a rise in tablet adoption will push users of transactional tablet banking to nearly 200 million consumers in 2017. That's about 19 percent of all mobile banking customers, the report said. Juniper said adoption of bill payment via tablets will be higher in developed areas, as they have a higher adoption of tablet devices overall."

Mobile Banking Updates - Jan 13

Retail Banking Predictions & Trends For 2013
"While The Financial Brand refrains from making any kind of annual forecast of trends in retail banking, there’s no shortage of experts weighing in with their predictions and resolutions for next year. What are some of the major themes that will dominate 2013? Here’s what they have to say."

Mobile Banking: Bigger Than I Thought…
"An early adopter of my bank’s mobile app, I have to admit that I really am not what you would consider a ‘power user’. While I enjoy the convenience of checking account balances from my iPhone, I really have not taken advantage of all of the features and services now available, which is somewhat surprising since I despise the process of visiting a bank, even to use an ATM."

Mobile banking to hit 1B users by 2017: study - Mobile Commerce Daily
"Mobile banking is expected to grow at a global compound annual rate of 18 percent to eventually reach one billion consumers in the next five years, according to a new study from Juniper Research. Juniper’s “Mobile Banking: Handset & Tablet Market Strategies 2013 – 2017” report looks at how mobile banking is spreading in both developed and underdeveloped countries. Overall, the report points to the growing maturity in the space over the past year."

Corporate Mobile Banking Offers On-the-Go Management Control System, But Enterprises Remain Wary
"Both banks and commercial enterprises tend towards caution when dealing with mobile banking for corporate transactions. This, despite online corporate banking offering executives "anytime, anywhere" management control functions, including viewing cash position in near real-time, approving payments and receiving alerts. Global Information Inc (GII) presents highlights from new market research on corporate mobile banking from our premium research partner Mercator Advisory Group, Inc. These reports individually and collectively offer valuable insights on the direction of the payments industry, both in relation to online corporate banking and out into extended applications of the technology."

Do What You Do: Capital One Touts Mid-Mobile Banking Multitasking
"The flurry of mobile banking ads lately is no accident. Just like every other business, banks have figured out that consumers are on the go — and connected — all the time. Banks are already scrambling to get their piece of the mobile payments market, and now mobile banking apps are the latest new thing. A slew of campaigns are featuring the ease of mobile banking, with banks such as Barclays expanding mobile. Bank of America says, 'Life is mobile. So is your bank.' Chase calls mobile banking, 'The power of Chase in the palm of your hand.'"

Mobile banking demand drives app development innovation
"Barclays bank says its decision touse private cloud and Linux will help it cut development costs and compete in the mobile banking sector. This year banks will invest in mobile banking platforms as the business case for these investments becomes easier to make in the light of increasing demand. Over a billion people will use mobile handsets to access banking services by the end of 2017, according to the results of a study by Juniper Research."

Mobile Banking Updates - Jan 23

Mobile Banking Service Adoption to Reach Over Half a Billion Users by 2013 Despite Economic Downturn
"Despite the challenging economic climate and threat of further global recession, a new report from Juniper Research finds that mobile banking users worldwide will reach 530 million by 2013, up from just over 300 million in 2011. Indeed, Juniper finds that mobile services are becoming a fundamental component of banks' business strategies as they respond to the current financial crisis."

Large Banks Slowly Building Corporate Mobile Apps: Survey
"The growth of mobile banking for corporate users has lagged that of consumer users, mostly because the specialized use case for corporate clients is harder to sell. But this is gradually changing, according to new research from Celent."

The Intersection of Mobile Banking and Payments: It’s About the User
"At the start of last year, Forrester Research predicted that mobile banking adoption would stall if financial institutions didn't begin implementing differentiated capabilities unique to the mobile channel. Mobile payments are one such capability and are steadily becoming a focal point in the race for mainstream adoption of mobile banking."

Protect your smartphone and tablet from identity theft
"Every week more people are buying smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices. And every week thieves are lurking to steal those gadgets — along with your banking and other personal information. According to Internet marketing researcher comScore, more than 32 million Americans used a mobile device to manage bank accounts during the second quarter of 2011 — about 14 percent of all mobile users in the United States. That’s up 21 percent from the last quarter of 2010, and experts predict continued growth as companies improve their mobile apps."

Mobile phone money transfers 'two years away'
"It's rumoured that bank customers should be able to transfer money to someone else's account using just their mobile phone within two years, as reported by The Financial Times. The Payments Council has been asked to help speed up bank money transfers. Its mobile money transfer plans could, in theory, make bank transfers easier and faster for mobile phone users."