Bank of America's Plan to Invade Your Smartphone

"Just this week, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said, 'If you have a smartphone in your pocket, you have a bank in your pocket.' While that may sound a touch terrifying, it is a good thing for both consumers and the biggest banks." Continue Reading

Announcing Javelin's 2013 Mobile Banking Financial Institution Award Winners

"The results of Javelin Strategy & Research's annual Mobile Banking Financial Institution study show that Bank of America, Citizens Bank, USAA, BBVA Compass, Wells Fargo, Chase and others banks are topping all competitors in mobile banking.

Javelin's sixth annual Mobile Banking Financial Institution study evaluates the abilities of financial institutions (FIs) to meet consumers' growing mobile banking needs as they evolve from mobile account monitoring to mobile money movement and beyond." Continue Reading

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. 

Meanwhile, online banking in general is having an effect on the brick and mortar, human-to-human business. In 2012, as consumers relied more heavily on online banking, banks closed 2,267 branches and only opened 1,149 for a net closure of 1,118 bank branches -- the most since the start of the economic downturn. What we've witnessed so far in the digitization of money management is only the beginning.

Many analysts are already projecting a further explosion in mobile banking and payments over the next four years. The foundation of banking as we know it is shifting." Continue Reading

2 Reasons You Should Thank Bank of America

"When it comes to mobile banking, Bank of America has always been on task and has included apps especially suited for tablet banking when peers Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase did not. It has continually worked to expand its base of mobile customers, realizing that doing so can be a real cost-saver.

Bank of America has also made progress with its website, which has been one of banking's most prickly, causing outages that have enraged consumers. New research shows that much work needs to be done in that regard, however -- and Bank of America risks losing customers if it doesn't take steps to keep its online presence viable." Continue Reading

BofA Grows Mobile Banking As Cost Cuts Lift Earnings

"Bank of America's (BAC) mobile banking customers surged 26% in Q3 from a year ago to 14 million, promising to reduce expenses and boost earnings further. Paying bills and checking balances anywhere via smartphones and tablets are convenient for consumers and businesses.

Because it replaces branches, tellers and ATMs,it can also cut costs per transaction for the bank, contributing to bottom-line growth. BofA earned 20 cents per share in Q3 vs. a break-even quarter a year ago, exceeding Wall Street's target by 2 cents." Continue Reading

Seen At 11: Direct Mobile Payments Catching On

"You can now use your smartphone to settle up the dinner check or pay the babysitter or person who mows your lawn. As CBS 2′s Kristine Johnson reported, person-to-person payments are the latest craze in mobile banking. 'Banking is turning into a companion activity,' said Gavin Michael, head of digital for Chase Bank.

'You’re doing it while you’re out and about, while you’re doing other things, while you’re living your life.' Customers can use their phones to send payments directly to someone else’s bank account. Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citibank and Chase all have such mobile banking programs." Continue Reading

Mobile Banking Matures and Keynote Announces Who Does It Best – Overall Adoption Reaches 33%, Mobile Payments Expected to Reach $90 Billion by 2017

"Keynote®, the global leader in Internet and mobile cloud testing and monitoring, today announced the results of the Fall 2013 edition of the Keynote Mobile Banking Scorecard, first launched in 2011 and the standard in benchmarking consumer mobile banking offerings. In the latest Scorecard, Chase achieved its fourth consecutive win for Overall Score.

Also repeating were Wells Fargo in second place and Bank of America in third, with U.S. Bank moving into the top tier, tying with Bank of America. Leaders for individual mobile modes included BB&T, repeating as the leading provider of SMS (text) banking capabilities and Bank of America repeating for the leading Android banking app.

Looking across the four modes -- Text, Mobile Web, iPhone App and Android App -- the Scorecard found that Chase performed best in two of the four categories, Ease of Use and Quality & Availability, while Bank of America took first in Functionality and Wells Fargo led in the Privacy & Security category." Continue Reading

Chase Keeps Lead in Keynote's Mobile App Scorecard

"Keynote has ranked Chase's mobile banking app the top in its class for the fourth time in a row. The bank's leadership is based on the fact that it offers robust functionality, a strong user experience, and streamlined navigation, according to Susan Foulds, manager of the Keynote Mobile Banking Scorecard.

That said, scoring among the top-tier banks - Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and newcomer U.S. Bank -- is tightening, Foulds says." Continue Reading

Mobile Banking Updates - Sept 17

Are mobile banking apps secure?
"A recent experience with a credit card app has a Wake County man questioning if his account information is secure when using his cell phone. You can access these mobile banking apps on your smart phone and tablet. Justin Frechette wanted to check his Capital One credit card account, but instead he was able to see someone else's activity. 'Logged in made sure the payment I recently made posted to the account and that the account balance was zero,' Justin said. But he didn't see a zero balance. Instead, lots of charges that didn't belong to him."

BofA's Mobile User Gains Follow Xoom, Industry Shift
"Bank of America's (BAC) mobile user gains come amid an industry shift that is reducing the need for branches and ATMs and lifting mobile payment firms like Xoom Corp. (XOOM) and Western Union (WU). BofA saw its mobile users jump 28% to 13.2 million from the second quarter of 2012 to Q2 2013, according to a presentation Wednesday. Mobile transactions are up 4%. Meantime, the lender has reduced its banking centers by 5% to 5,328 nationwide, and direct-contact transactions have fallen 12%."

Hottest tech sector is all about money
"Finovate, the giant financial technology conference, blew into town yesterday, selling out the Manhattan Center on West 34th Street. Among the hottest trends this year were applications and products for banks, and—perhaps not surprisingly—fraud prevention systems. As more of the nation's banking system moves online, preventing fraud is an increasing concern for executives. 'All the thought leaders are here,' said Sunil Madhu, founder and CEO of Manhattan-based fraud prevention startup Socure, which sells its service to companies. Its service is aimed at allowing banks to verify consumers' identities."

Yalamanchili ships white-label mobile wallet app for banks
"Global payments solutions provider, Yalamanchili, has launched a white label mobile wallet application for global banking and financial institutions operating on its next generation payments platform. The wallet provides Yalamanchili's clients with a comprehensive and fully customisable mobile banking facility capable of supporting international money transfers, the management of multiple card accounts and a variety of mobile value added services, rewards and location based offers."

SIMPLE WILL START GRANTING VENMO USERS EARLY ACCESS TO ITS MOBILE BANKING APP
"Venmo, the popular payments app that lets friends pay each other via mobile for free, is offering its users early access to Simple, the mobile banking app that offers the same amenities big banks do, like checking accounts and debit cards, but without the traps of hidden fees and high interest rates. Simple and Venmo previously partnered in July, when Simple became the first banking service to offer its customers Venmo Touch, which allows you to make payments in third-party apps with a single tap."

Mobile banking expert Wolman to speak at ISU
"David Wolman, a contributing editor for Wired.com and author of "The End of Money," will speak about the impact of going cashless at a free lecture Sept. 19 at Iowa State University."

Mobile Banking Updates - Aug 25

Mobile Banking Continued Steady Growth in July
"Consumers' use of mobile banking apps continued to grow at roughly the same rate in July as the previous month, resulting in a reading for American Banker's Mobile Banking Intensity Index of 71.8. The biggest change during the month was in mobile check deposit: the index value for the average transaction value of checks deposited via mobile device dropped more than 10 points. However, check sizes are still growing, just not quite as much as they were in June. In July, 52% of bankers said the average value of checks deposited by consumers using a smartphone camera was higher than in in June. Almost half (47%) said the average value was about the same; less than 1% said these checks had gotten smaller."

Americans Rank the Top 10 Best and Worst Mobile Banking Apps
"Why did U.S. consumers rank Citizen’s Bank highest? And what three critical areas do several banks need to improve in? What do consumers think of banks’ mobile banking apps? It’s easy enough to find out. Just pop on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, where you can look at customer ratings and reviews."

Bank of America Tops 1 Million Small Business Mobile Banking Users
"More than one million Bank of America small business clients are now using mobile banking, according to a statement today by the bank. The milestone in adoption can be credited to the flexibility that mobile banking affords small business owners, Mary Bintz, a small business sales executive said in the statement. 'Today’s small business owners… are in their cars and trucks, on factory floors, shopping for supplies and visiting clients on-site.'"

Sterling Bank Launches Mobile Banking Solutions
"Sterling Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:STSA), whose principal operating subsidiary does business in Washington, Oregon and Idaho as Sterling Bank, today announced that it is launching a robust mobile banking suite for consumer customers. Now, Sterling Bank customers can manage accounts with a mobile phone or a tablet using the Sterling Bank Mobile App, which is available for iPhone(R), iPad(R) and Android(TM) devices. Customers can also access accounts with Mobile Web or enroll in Text Banking and text the bank to receive account balance and recent transactions."

Top 10 Mobile Banking Mistakes
"There’s plenty of great information out there for consumers about the dos and don’ts of mobile banking—password protect your device, use caution with what apps you install on your phone—but there are also plenty of mistakes financial institutions make when it comes to mobile. Let’s look at what may be considered to be the top ten."

Demystifying m-commerce
"Smartphones are already more popular globally than desktop PCs and of the 1.875 billion phones to be sold in 2013, a staggering 1 billion will be smartphones. In Europe, revenue from mobile commerce is predicted to rise from €1.7 billion in 2011 to €19.2 billion in 2017, according to Forrester (EU Mobile Commerce Forecast, 2012 to 2017; July 2012). This presents a huge revenue opportunity in the face of declining high street sales, and companies that fail to adapt their online strategy may be left behind as a result. In a recent study, Chase Paymentech found that only 40% of merchants have a mobile commerce site in place to provide a seamless multi-channel shopping experience."

Mobile banking hype ahead of reality
"When it comes to mobile banking, the hype can get out of hand quickly. We tend to note new gee-whiz trends, such as the rise of remote deposit, and conclude that mobile banking is making great leaps forward. It's refreshing to hear a voice of dissent. "Mobile banking is great if I am sitting at an airport and feel the urge to make a payment or check up on something. It has been equally terrific when I have needed to get to my bank accounts and do not have access to my computer to do an online banking session. But mobile banking, at least with my primary bank, has proven itself unreliable, and too limited on too many occasions that my first preference for now remains online banking," says one consultant."

ICYMI podcasts: Software defined networks now, mobile banking of the future
"This week’s guest on the GigaOM Structure Show, certainly isn’t shy with his opinions. Tune in to hear North Bridge Venture Partners partner Paul Santinelli offer his take on the software-defined networking segment to Derrick Harris and Barb Darrow. The GigaOM Weekly Wrapup show recaps the highs and lows of BlackBerry’s history, as well as some positive analyst updates for Sprint and T-Mobile: Should Verizon and AT&T be worried?"

Mobile Banking Updates - June 12

B of A's Gopalkrishnan Uses 'Hackathons' to Create Mobile Apps
"Like most of the bankers we profiled this year, Hari Gopalkrishnan, managing director, consumer and wealth management, ecommerce technology, consumer banking architecture and segments technology executive for Bank of America Merrill Lynch speaks of simplicity in mobile banking design and user experience."

Feeling Insecure About Mobile Banking? You're Not Alone
"It's a scary cyber-world out there, and fear concerning Internet security is one of the top reasons that bank customers avoid mobile banking. For banks, expanding mobile offerings is win-win, enabling them to shutter expensive branch locations while opening newer, more modern spaces that cater to banking via the Internet. So, what do banks need to do to assuage customers' fears about mobile banking -- and, more importantly, what is being done to improve security measures to protect consumers' private information?"

Wells Fargo & Co (WFC), Bank of America Corp (BAC) & Citigroup Inc (C): Feeling Insecure About Mobile Banking? You’re Not Alone
"It's a scary cyber-world out there, and fear concerning Internet security is one of the top reasons that bank customers avoid mobile banking. For banks, expanding mobile offerings is win-win, enabling them to shutter expensive branch locations while opening newer, more modern spaces that cater to banking via the Internet. So, what do banks need to do to assuage customers' fears about mobile banking -- and, more importantly, what is being done to improve security measures to protect consumers' private information?"

Blackhawk and Monitise in mobile gift card partnership
"Blackhawk Network and Monitise are partnering to make mobile gift card purchasing available to consumers through certain banks and financial institutions in the US. In addition, the companies intend to expand their relationship into additional markets. Prepaid gift cards from Blackhawk Network's popular GiftCardMall will be available to consumers for purchase from participating banks and payment companies' mobile wallets, powered by Monitise. With this new relationship, Blackhawk's extensive network will integrate into Monitise's mobile banking ecosystem, making it easier for consumers to purchase Blackhawk gift cards from popular retail brands via mobile."

Mobile Banking Is Mainstream — What About Security, ROI, Payments?
"Sitting alone at the back of a hotel meeting room, Theodore Iacobuzio had a stern message for bankers: "The train is leaving the station," said Iacobuzio, a MasterCard executive, referring to the emerging mobile payment economy. 'You have to get on.' Earlier that Wednesday, Iacobuzio had spoken on a panel at the Mobile Banking and Commerce Summit in Miami about using data to drive relevant offers to cardholders. Mobile banking and payments are at the forefront of his mind."

Threat of the Week: Mayhem in the Mobile Browser
"It’s coming. For the past five years warnings of a coming assault by cybercriminals on mobile banking have kept getting louder. Yet the plain fact is that successful attacks on the mobile channel in the United States have been scarce. 'Mobile threats remain nascent,' said Vince Arneja, a vice president at security firm Arxan. But just maybe that’s about to change, mainly because more cyber crooks are putting more energy into mobile and, lately, there are signs that the bad guys are starting to cash in on a vulnerability that is found on just about every smartphone."

Consumers Calling the Shots in Mobile Banking
"In mobile banking, customers are faster at conveying what they want than banks are at delivering the goods. That was one of the main messages conveyed by a panel of bank technologists at the Mobile Banking and Commerce Summit on Tuesday. The customer in control marks a wild transformation from years past, when banks waited for account holders to call them. Such a passive communication approach is no longer acceptable for financial institutions."

Mobile Banking Updates - June 9

The Quest for Simplicity in Mobile App Design
"We heard it again and again from Charaka Kithulegoda and other bankers honored in our Mobile Banker of the Year package this year: simplicity and ease of use are the keys to sound mobile banking app design. 'People don't live to bank, financial institutions exist to serve their needs,' observes Hari Gopalkrishnan, a managing director at Bank of America."

You Talking to Me? How Voice Is Revolutionizing Mobile Banking
"Want to race? Pull up your mobile banking app, enter bill pay data, click pay. I'll use my voice to log in - no keying in the password - and simply tell the app whom to pay, how much. Who will be faster? Who will get the job done with less irritation? And with none of the miskeyed entries that turn so much mobile banking into an exercise in angst."

The 5 Biggest Pain Points for Mobile Banking
"I just attended and presented at the Mobile Banking and Conference Summit in Miami. Now in its seventh year (mobile banking existed in 2006?!?), the conference was an exploration of how financial institutions are being influenced by, and taking advantage of, the mobile channel and mobile technology. A few hundred attendees, including mostly high-level executive, product, technology and marketing folks were there."

Finance on the fly with convenience of mobile banking
"'App. Snap. Deposit.' Sound easy? It is. Banking has become as simple as one, two, three. Manage your money on-the-go, anywhere, anytime, in the click of a button. Check account balances, recent transaction history, transfer funds and locate nearby branches and ATMs – all on your mobile device for free. The way of the future is now."

U.S. Bank's Badarinath Isn't Shy About Testing the Mobile Waters
"'In banking, there are few sustainable sources of competitive advantage,' says Niti Badarinath, senior vice president and head of mobile banking at U.S. Bank, Minneapolis. 'Product innovation is probably not a place where banks can truly distinguish themselves, especially in consumer banking. Pricing is also not a source of sustainable competitive advantage: you can change some rates here and there, but it's not something you can keep differentiating yourself on. Then it comes down to, how easy are you going to make it for your customers to access and manage their finances?'"

The ROI of Mobile Banking
"Today, the general consensus is that mobile banking capabilities are table stakes for financial institutions. While it's certainly true that consumers are coming to expect mobile banking, it should not be regarded as just another cost of doing business. Mobile banking actually delivers a compelling return on investment. Once a bank or credit union has the foundation of mobile banking in place, the addition of services like person-to-person payments and remote deposit capture can provide new revenue sources, as research indicates consumers will pay for such convenience-enhancing features."

BBVA Compass adds picture bill pay capabilities to its iPhone mobile banking app
"BBVA Compass today expanded its iPhone app with Picture Bill Pay, allowing customers to pay bills and add payees by taking pictures of their paper bills with their iPhones. 'We wanted our app to be as robust as possible since nearly 35 percent of those who take advantage of mobile banking manage their finances exclusively through their apps,' said Alejandro Carriles, director of self-service channels at BBVA Compass. 'Innovative and fun features like this allow us to improve and simplify those customers' experiences.'"

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 - April 25

Refi Party Is Over, Mobile Money Party Is Just Beginning
"Mobile Money: Anglocentric coverage in today's FT. "For prospective employees mobile banking could prove one bright spot for pay and prospects in the sector," says one story. "Retail banks are expecting mobile banking to be the area where the most roles will be created this year, ahead of branch and internet banking." Another article looks at the competitive threat to incumbent U.K. financial institutions from nonbanks selling phone apps, prepaid debit cards, etc. "Banks will have a hard time coming down and playing in this space because of their regulators," a payments industry lawyer tells the FT. Sound familiar?"

4 tips for finding the best mobile banking
"Mobile banking use is exploding, and banks are quickly adding new services. Last year, 10 million more people signed up for mobile banking, according to Javelin Strategy & Research in Pleasanton, Calif., driven by soaring smartphone and tablet use. And, one-third of the U.S. population is now tapping into mobile banking, versus one-fifth in 2010. But mobile services vary widely. Here's the mobile banking landscape you're likely to encounter and how to choose the best bank and apps for you. Big banks such as JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America and Citi have led the charge, offering the most robust mobile banking technology, says Mary Monahan, Javelin's research director of mobile. And they consistently head the class in mobile banking service quality rankings, though regional banks are also quickly adding mobile services."

CO-OP Introduces Mobile App for iPad
"Credit union clients of CO-OP Financial Services are now able to offer their members a mobile banking app for the iPad tablet. The new app will let members account balances and cash flow charts that summarize debit and credit activity; account history; transfers; and GPS-enabled access to CO-OP Network ATM or CO-OP Shared Branching locations, the payment CUSO said. In addition, the app enables each credit union to customize with member access to their own hosted web pages for loan/account opening services, rates and promotions; or social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube."

Regions online banking goes down due to "network issue"
"Many Regions Bank customers were without online banking access Monday after what the company calls an 'intermittent network issue.' The bank said in a statement on their Facebook Monday they are experiencing a network issue which is impacting some customer's ability to access their website. Those wishing to access the company's website, Regions.com, were taken to a Network Solutions backorder domain website. 'I've been trying to log on off and on since this morning and it is a different page and says the domain no longer exists. I didn't type any info in because I was afraid I'd be hacked,' says Leanne Eldridge."

Wells Fargo's Big Idea: Shrinking Branch Office
"Can neighborhood bank branch offices works smarter, and not harder? Oh, and can they work smaller, too? Wells Fargo (WFC) aims to find out starting this month. The San Francisco banking giant opened a branch Monday in Washington, D.C., that is one-third the size of the usual and comes well-stocked with such features as mobile banking, new ATMs and image-based bank deposits."

Mobile Banking Updates - April 24

Better Authentication is Key to DDoS, Mobile Banking Protection: Jeff Carter
"'When you don't have trusted identities for accessing your online banking infrastructure, anyone in the wild can make a request, and you have to respond to it,' says Jeff Carter, who ran innovation for Bank of America and the Center for Future Banking, a joint venture between Bank of America, MIT and Harvard University, for six years and is currently chief strategy officer at EyeLock. He has a vested interest: his company's technology scans the human iris to create a "trusted identity" that can be used to authenticate users of anything, including a mobile banking app or online banking site."

Dr. Gavin Michael Joins JPMorgan Chase as Head of Digital for Consumer and Community Banking
"Chase announced today that Dr. Gavin Michael has joined the firm as Head of Digital for Chase's Consumer and Community Banking division. Michael served as the Chief Technology Innovation Officer at Accenture since 2010, where he was responsible for the innovation agenda, technology strategy, and research and development. He will report to Gordon Smith, CEO of Chase Consumer and Community Banking, and Guy Chiarello, Chief Information Officer for JPMorgan Chase. 'We are extremely pleased to have Gavin join the firm,' said Gordon Smith, CEO of Consumer & Community Banking. 'With over 31 million active Chase.com users and more than 12 million active mobile users, it's important that we continue to innovate and provide exceptional customer experience in our internet and mobile channels. Gavin has more than 20 years of experience across Retail Banking technology, including governance, organization, strategy, and innovation. His experience in running large, complex global projects across financial services and consulting makes him a great fit to lead Chase's mobile and digital channel.'"

Mobile banking: Increased acceptance equals greater opportunities for FIs
"Mobile devices have become a part of everyday life around the world, used for banking, entertainment, communication, payments, budgeting and even shopping. A recent survey by the U.S. Federal Reserve focused not only on the general growth in mobile usage but also on the increasing number of U.S. consumers turning to mobile for their financial service needs. Mobile phone and mobile Internet access have become much more widespread in the United States; 87 percent of the population now own mobile phones, 52 percent of which are smartphones. More surprisingly, the Federal Reserve found that 28 percent of mobile phone owners have used their phones for mobile banking in the last 12 months. An even larger proportion of smartphone owners (48 percent) have done the same. The most common uses of mobile banking are to check account balances or recent transactions (87 percent), and to transfer money (53 percent) and deposit checks (21 percent)."

IAB: 58 per cent of Americans use mobile banking apps
"But 52 per cent say they want a concrete guarantee their transactions are safe before using mobile banking more often. One billion people are expected to use mobile banking by 2017, while NatWest and RBS recently strengthened their mobile solutions with in-app customer service tools. IAB now finds that 58 per cent of Americans user their bank's mobile app, while 50 per cent use their bank's mobile website. Meanwhile, 25 per cent are aware of the app and 26 per cent are aware of the site, though they're yet to use them."

Mobile Banking Updates - April 22

What Will the Next Generation of Corporate Mobile Banking Look Like?
"'Mobile banking is evolving quickly for companies. This evolution is being propelled by the phenomenal growth in personal smartphone usage. Our clients now want to take the convenience and mobility they have with their personal smartphone into the workplace,' says James Gifas, head of RBS Citizens Treasury Solutions. "Over one third of smartphone owners in the U.S. are using their devices for personal mobile banking, and consumers want their business banking to be just as convenient."

6 Mobile Banking Features on B of A's Drawing Board
"Bank of America isn't generally first to market with new mobile banking features, but when it does offer something new, it draws high adoption numbers and it strikes fear in the hearts of competing bankers, who know their customers will soon start asking why their bank doesn't offer it. Case in point: the bank launched mobile check deposit last August (USAA launched this feature in August 2009; Chase launched it in July 2010). Today, Bank of America has 1.9 million users of mobile deposit, it's processed 18 million check images captured this way, and on average it is handling 100,000 checks per day through mobile deposit."

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."

Behold, the next gen of mobile banking
"Like nearly every other industry--entertainment, journalism, personal communications--banking is changing at an amazing rate. It's not a white shoe enterprise anymore, thanks to the nearly ubiquitous adoption of mobile phones and tablets. And banks have better get ready because these tech-savvy customers are already using their phones for checking balances and making payments, and they want to do even more. Those were the words of warning from a senior player in the mobile banking space in an address before mobile finance executives at Mobey Forum in San Francisco."

The Next Steps For Consumers And Mobile Banking
"Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of mobile financial apps and services, but there’s still more that banks and FIs can do to increase adoption. That’s one of the takeaways from a new survey by IAB, InMobi and Viggle, which poled more than 1,200 consumers on their various thoughts and feelings on mobile financial services. Over half of all respondents indicated that they use financial mobile apps, but how many remain unaware of their existence? PYMNTS.com takes a look in this Data Point."

The Nexus of Forces and Software Quality in Banking
"Financial sector software failures fill our news pages – from banks failing to make payments to cash machines giving away free money, these high profile crashes are just the tip of the iceberg. The challenge of ensuring quality of software and IT in the banking sector is nothing new. Banking IT is highly complex, with different systems for both retail and investment banks. A typical banking IT scenario may encompass several different systems from multiple vendors, developed independently and integrated over a period of twenty years. The business supported by the systems is so wide that no single team understands the entire IT infrastructure."

Mobile Banking Updates - Dec 19

Bank of America's Plan to Drive Mobile Banking Beyond 12 Million Users
"Twelve million mobile banking customers may sound like a satisfactory number, but Bank of America wants more. As part of a drive to sign up more people for mobile banking, the bank is outfitting its teller stations with quick response (QR) codes that can be scanned by mobile devices to download the mobile app. David Godsman, senior vice president of online and mobile solutions, says the teller station registration is part of a multi-pronged campaign to grow mobile banking. The bank's current 12 million mobile subscribers are a fraction of its 58 million total consumer and business customers."

2012 Hispanic Mobile Banking Infographic
"The growth of mobile device technology and its usage throughout the day changes the way marketing is done. ThinkNow Research and Zpryme Hispanic Insights have collaborated to create an infographic that shows statistical trends in Hispanic mobile banking usage. Although financial institutions aggressively promote their mobile websites and applications to consumers through TV commercials and online app stores, this study shows the main reason Latinos don't use mobile banking is because they are concerned about security (44%)."

Mobile check deposits latest in mobile banking technology
"A result of growing customer demand for more technology-focused banking convenience, mobile check deposits are now available as part of the Arvest Mobile Banking application for iPhone® and Android™. This is among the most sought-after services by today’s banking consumer and is changing the way deposits are made. Mobile check deposits allow consumers to use their smartphones camera capability to take photos of a check and deposit it remotely, anytime, from almost anywhere, without ever setting foot in their bank."

Credit Unions Outperforming Community Banks in Mobile: Report
"Credit unions are outperforming community banks in mobile banking, according to new research from Pleasanton, Calif.-based Javelin Strategy & Research. Javelin examined the top ten community banks and top ten credit unions, by deposit size, and found that nine out of the ten credit unions offered web-based mobile banking, while three out of the ten community banks reviewed do not offer a single form of mobile banking."

Mobile Banking Updates - Dec 9

Mobile Banking's Legal Dark Side
"Heard of Maxim Inc.? If you're a bank interested in developing mobile payments innovation, you should have, because the company claims it invented key technology that entitles it to a piece of the mobile payments pie."

Citizens Bank Mobile Banking Apps For iPhone®, Android™ Receive #1 Ranking For Customer Satisfaction
"Citizens Bank’s Mobile Banking apps for iPhone and Android have been named the “best integrated apps” in the industry by Javelin Strategy & Research following its review of customer ratings in the Apple App Store and in Google Play. Citizens Bank’s average customer rating of 4.25 out of 5 stars was the best in the industry, tied only by USAA, Javelin reported this week."

U.S. Payments Market: Mobile & Alternative Payments Analysis with A Business Case for Mobile Banking
"RnRMarketResearch.com adds "Mobile and Alternative Payments in the U.S., 3rd Edition" , "The Business Case for Mobile Banking" , "Mobile Banking and Payments" and "Alternative Payment Channels" reports to its store. With mobile taking over daily, dedicated personal space and time of people, banking and financial industry has the most exciting and equally challenging task on hand of offering mobile payments and mobile banking services with all security and personal touch of the non-mobile payments and banking experience to the end users."

Bank of America CEO's Desperate Mobile Banking Pitch
"Is Bank of America (BAC_) CEO Brian Moynihan really excited about mobile banking--or is that just the best he can do to try and change the conversation from lawsuits, fees and regulations? Inevitably, Moynihan was asked about fees during an appearance on CNBC Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal had reported on its front page Sunday that the bank was backing away from fees in a bid to get customers to hate the bank a bit less."

Research and Markets: Mobile Banking Gains 10 Million Users As Smartphone And Tablet Adoption Soars
"The ability to securely manage banking transactions, especially on smartphones and tablets, has become extremely appealing. Mobile banking gained 10 million new users in 2012 and currently reaches one-third of the mobile adult U.S. population. As smartphones outnumber feature phones and tablets surge, Android and Apple delivered and defined the market in 2012. Consumer adoption of mobile banking at small, medium, and giant institutions and credit unions varies by the quality of mobile services offered. This report contains an annual roundup of five-year forecasts for the U.S. consumer market for mobile banking adoption, mobile phone usage, smartphone adoption, smartphone adoption by operating system, tablet adoption, and tablet adoption by operating system."

For These 4 Banks, the Future Is Now
"For banks looking for innovative ways to serve customers without incurring costs to themselves, mobile banking is the perfect area in which to grow. Overall, banks have been somewhat slow to develop and promote these services. Here are four that are actively pushing mobile offerings, placing them ahead of their more sluggish competitors."

U.S. Bank Partners with Mitek for Mobile Photo Bill Pay; Will Launch to Consumers in Early 2013
"U.S. Bank, fifth-largest bank in the United States and lead bank of U.S. Bancorp (NYS: USB) , and Mitek Systems (NAS: MITK) , a leading mobile imaging software solutions provider and the pioneer of Mobile Deposit® technology, have entered into a strategic mobile technology partnership to offer Mitek's Mobile Photo Bill Pay™ product to U.S. Bank customers."

Javelin Research: It’s a Mobile World
"The newly issued 2012 Mobile Banking Financial Institution Scorecard: from Javelin Strategy & Research hammers home one point, loudly: Financial services have become a mobile world. Mobile banking now is used by 33% of mobile consumers, per Javelin, a jump from the 24% who used it in 2011. Of the top 25 financial institutions in the U.S., half now offer mobile person-to-person payments as well as mobile remote deposit capture, numbers that have “more than doubled” since the 2011 report."

Mobile Banking Updates - Dec 6

Mobile Banking Adoption Grows
"Chase, Bank of America, and USAA are the top mobile banking providers equipped to deal with rising expectations from consumers, according to a new report from Javelin Strategy and Research. Javelin Strategy & Research’s latest report evaluates the 25 leading U.S. retail financial institutions (FIs) mobile banking offerings by comparing features, mobile access, app, Web and text banking, and mobile alerts."

LevelUp to Provide Mobile Payments at Louisville's KFC Yum! Center
"The KFC Yum! Center is the first sports arena to allow visitors to pay with their mobile phone at all hospitality and merchandise stands thanks to hospitality partner Centerplate, which announced that it has tapped LevelUp to provide the KFC Yum! Center's mobile payment experience at 200 merchandise and hospitality stands."

Applying Developing-Market Mobile Banking Models in the Developed World
"A U.S. federal report released in September found that 8.2 percent of households in the country are unbanked. That’s nearly 10 million households, and 17 million adults. Another 20.4 percent are underbanked—or 24 million households, and 51 million adults. Those numbers add up to more than a quarter of the population of the U.S. The percentage of both unbanked and underbanked has increased slightly since the last survey (conducted in 2009). Americans are also using alternative financial services more, including payday loans, check cashing, money orders, pawn shops, etc. Both increases are most likely due to the economic recession and resulting high unemployment rates."

Mobile banking and 'the real world' come together at the ATM
"With all the talk of 'the death of cash,' the trusty old ATM spitting out cash isn't going anywhere anytime soon. But financial services companies are exploring ways to more closely connect smartphones and apps with the ATM, seeing the ubiquitous cash machine as way to link mobile banking and payments to the 'real world.' One way ATM manufacturers are looking at the connection is by offering mobile 'prestaging' of cash withdrawals at the ATM."

New Boston Fed Report on Mobile Payments Technology
"The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston has released a new report entitled, "Mobile Phone Technology: 'Smarter' Than We Thought"."

Mobile Banking Updates - Nov 18

PayAnywhere jumps into mobile-payment ring
"Square is on a roll, and PayPal's triangular device is gaining momentum. But a new national mobile-payment service thinks it has enough game to disrupt the fledgling market. In the past year, Detroit-based PayAnywhere has quietly amassed a formidable retail network — Walmart, Home Depot, Amazon, OfficeMax, Sam's Club, Sears and Kmart are among its partners — to sell its $9.95 mobile credit card readers to business merchants."

Bank of America, First Data unveil mobile credit-card processor
"A joint venture between Bank of America and Atlanta payment processor First Data is jumping into the game of turning smart phones and tablets into cashless pay stations. Atlanta-based Bank of America Merchant Services unveiled on Tuesday its Mobile Pay on Demand card readers and mobile applications, becoming the latest challenger in a crowded new niche for processing credit and debit cards for smaller businesses that want to be more mobile or ones that are new to electronic payments."

Visa Moves Banks To The Virtual Wallet
"Earlier this year we forecasted the need for big financial institutions to enter e-commerce as the credit card industry matures. Several tech companies had already entered into e-commerce as a challenge to traditional banking. Visa’s (V) mobile payment program, V.me, recently exited out of beta testing and has announced the cooperation of over 50 banks and credit unions with the service. V.me largely resembles Paypal (owned by eBay) by getting rid of the need to enter all those numbers on your credit card when you buy online. The program is entering an increasingly saturated “m-commerce market” that includes products from the Square, Mastercard (MA), Google (GOOG), eBay (EBAY), and American Express (AXP)."

Bank of America Mobilizes Merchants
"When it comes to mobile banking services, Bank of America has outrun its peers every time. While JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup all offer a varied palette of mobile options, B of A consistently offers the most -- and updates these offerings regularly. Having excelled in the customer mobile offerings department, the bank is now moving into the retailer arena, offering a new way for merchants to turn their smartphones and tablets into roaming payment terminals. Though not a new idea, the dongle-based payment system will put B of A in the same space as payment giant Square, and tech biggie Apple."

Has Square Already Won America's Mobile Payments Race?
"Back in January 2011, Starbucks became the first national retailer to offer its own mobile payment technology combined with a loyalty program. It led to more than 100 million mobile transactions occurring in its U.S. stores since the launch. Now, in a move to push mobile commerce even further, Starbucks is accepting payments in some 7,000 retail locations via Square, Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey's mobile payment app for iOS and Android smartphones."

Mobile Banking – More Than Everyday Transactions
"You may have noticed that much of the recent industry news around mobile banking has focused on everyday banking transactions. The message we’re seemingly inundated with is that online banking is only the first step, and that truly anywhere/anytime processing of everyday transactions like balance statements, transfers, as well as credit, payment and cheque processing can more easily be accomplished with mobile banking. What’s been missing from the story, though, is mobile banking’s significance to high-value transactions, like mortgage openings and those accompanying investment and wealth management."