Google Glass Half-Empty for Wells Fargo Beta Testers

"A mobile banking application created by Wells Fargo Co. for Google Inc.’s wearable Google Glass computing device isn’t gaining much traction among internal testers, according to Miranda Hill, vice president and product management manager for Wells Fargo Labs. The app is part of the bank’s efforts to focus on applications for mobile devices." Continue Reading

Wells Fargo has over a million iPad app customers for online banking

"In a keynote address kicking off the TabletBiz conference here, Wells Fargo Executive VP Steve Ellis said tablets, particularly the iPad, have led the bank to think differently about how it provides financial services. Today Wells Fargo has over 12 million mobile customers and Ellis sees a rapid migration from PCs." Continue Reading

Wells Fargo sees big uptick in mobile banking users (Video)

"Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC), Colorado’s largest bank, has seen significant growth in its mobile banking users in the last couple of years, which has meant the bank has had to work hard to keep up the latest mobile technologies and security procedures. In a nutshell for banks, that means always making sure the technology works and provides a safe and seamless experience for its customers, said Armin Ajami, vice president and senior product manager for Wells Fargo." 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

Wells Fargo Rebuilds Website, Mobile Apps for Corporate Clients

"Wells Fargo, which was one of the first banks to offer mobile banking apps to business customers in 2007, has been making some updates. First and foremost, it's created a browser-based, mobile-optimized CEO Mobile site. The site was built in-house in HTML5 using the open source YUI framework for building interactive web applications. All 89 web apps within the current CEO corporate portal are being re-architected and recoded for the new site." 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 8

Wells Fargo mobile guru Steve Ellis to keynote TabletBiz conference & expo
"The tablet event of the year kicks off November 13 in New York with the executive who helped Wells Fargo transition into online and mobile banking. Steve Ellis is a bit of a mobile guru when it comes to mobile banking. The fast pace of Wells Fargo’s early move into online and mobile financial services, including tablets was due in large part to his commitment to fostering workplace creativity. Ellis is executive vice president and group head of the Wells Fargo Wholesale Services Group, the commercial side of the company that includes commercial loan services, customer analytics, risk management, and mobile and social media strategies. Ellis was instrumental in launching Wells Fargo’s Commercial Electronic Office (CEO) Internet portal in 2000."

6 Tips for Safer Smartphone Banking
"More than half of American adults have a smartphone today, and more of us are using them to check balances, pay bills, deposit checks and conduct other banking business. A March report from the Federal Reserve found that slightly more than a quarter of cell-phone owners and nearly half of smartphone owners use their devices for banking, and that number is only expected to grow. Mobile banking can be a great time-saver, but it also presents the risk that you could have sensitive account data — and by extension, your money — stolen if you’re not careful."

New perks make banking easier
"Paying your bills and taking care of other banking chores is a pain. Even more painful: the fees you’ll face if you don’t do them when you need to. But here’s good news from ShopSmart, the shopping magazine from the publisher of Consumer Reports: Banks have introduced five services that make those tasks easier and more rewarding."

moTwin Announces Round of Funding, Adds New Investor
"French enterprise mobile app developer moTwin has closed an additional $2.7M in financing from new investor Sigma Gestion, as well as previous partners Seventure Partners and Naxicap Partners. This brings the total capital raised by moTwin to $7.3M, underscoring the opportunity for unique technology that can bridge user experience and cloud integration in mobile apps. The new funds will be used for international expansion, including adding additional sales and support resources to its Palo Alto office."

Black Hills Federal Credit Union Updates Digital Banking Experience with Corillian Online and Mobiliti from Fiserv
"Fiserv, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISV), a leading global provider of financial services technology solutions, today announced that Black Hills Federal Credit Union (Black Hills), a nearly $1 billion credit union based in South Dakota, has significantly enhanced its digital banking services for its 58,000 members. As part of an overhaul of its digital brand, including its website and online and mobile banking capabilities, Black Hills deployed Corillian Online® and Mobiliti™ from Fiserv, along with several complementary solutions."

RBS Citizens Tops In Mobile Banking Ratings
"Mobile banking apps from RBS Citizens Bank, based in Providence, came in tops with customers in surveys by Xtreme Labs and Javelin. The bank’s iOS app came in at the highest score with 4.5 stars and 93 percent favorable review and its Android app placed second, just behind USAA, with 4.5 stars and 97 percent good reviews."

Big Data and Payments Drive Loyalty in Business Banking.
"In the 'consumer edition' of the blog I suggested that banks can reinvigorate their payments brand and influence customer loyalty by integrating incentives and offers to their payments solutions. The premise is that banks are missing out on an opportunity to become more influential in where people shop and what they buy, rather than just how they pay. Offers can be driven by analytics into a combination of historical payments information and big data analysis of demographics, location positioning and peer group analysis. Such a strategy requires more than an offers solution, or a mobile banking app."

Mobile Banking Updates - June 30

Consumers More Willing to Pay for Mobile Banking: Study
"Over the past year, consumers have become more willing to pay for mobile banking services, according to a new report by ath Power Consulting. 'Mobile is a unique channel in so many different ways,' says Michael McEvoy, managing director of the consultancy and author of the report. 'There's an opportunity to charge.'"

Wells Fargo Makes Text Receipts Available at ATMs
"Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) announced today that in addition to its popular email or e-receipt option, it is introducing text receipts at its more than 12,000 ATMs across the country. This new service is available to all Wells Fargo Online or Mobile Banking customers who provide their mobile phone number. As the first bank to offer e-receipts to its customers at its ATMs in June 2010, Wells Fargo also is the first to introduce a text receipt option."

Mobile to overtake web at online bank
"ING DIRECT has launched a new mobile app designed to meet the demand of its growing mobile customer base, in response to the staggering 280% increase in mobile interactions in 2012. 'The consistent trend in web visits has been around 15% year on year, but this spike in mobile interactions is proof of ever-growing consumer demand and comfort to be able to ‘do’ while on the go,' said Executive Director Distribution at ING DIRECT, Lisa Claes."

Most Wanted Mobile Banking Feature: RDC
"Remote Deposit Capture, is the most wanted feature by mobile banking customers, according to a new mobile banking study conducted by ath Power Consulting. Users also ranked Voice Authentication and Mobile Photo Bill Pay high in the 2013 ath Power Mobile Banking Study, released just this March. The study was the second mobile banking study ath conducted since last year. One in 3 mobile banking users are more likely to pay for mobile banking now than they were just a year ago, when 1 in 5 stated they would pay for the service. As part of the research, ath studied 3,201 mobile banking customers from 380 banks and credit unions, while 223 current mobile banking users from 35 institutions were asked to login and perform specific tasks."

Bay Banks in Va. to Add Mobile Banking, Close Branch
"Bay Banks of Virginia (BAYK) in Kilmarnock plans to close a branch and begin offering mobile banking. The $327 million-asset company will consolidate three branches in Northumberland County into two, it announced Wednesday. It plans to close its branch in Heathsville on Sept. 30, while retaining its Burgess and Callao locations, it said."

Ally Bank Wins Customer Experience Award for Ally Mobile Banking App Design
"Ally Bank recently received three recognitions underscoring its customer-centric philosophy and commitment to offering consumers straightforward products and services. The Bank was awarded Forrester's 2013 "Outside In" Award in the Customer Experience Design category for its innovative and customer-friendly design of Ally Mobile Banking, the app that allows customers to conduct a wide range of banking tasks via their Android™ or iPhone® smartphones."

Mobile Banking Updates - June 23

Mobile banking trends continue to expand 
"When was the last time you went to the bank? We took the question to Nicollet Mall.'6 months ago, maybe?' was the first response we got. 'Does an ATM count? I would say I went a couple of months ago with my kids, to cash their piggy banks,' was the second answer we got."

Must-Have Mobile Banking Services In 2013
"As much of the country has become mobile-reliant, it makes sense to check out the available mobile apps and features in regard to your banking needs. Mobile apps can be useful in many ways, especially when you’re on the go and need to take care of your finances. Apps make it easy to keep track of your bank accounts as well as your personal finances as a whole."

Mobile banking shifts into overdrive
"Online banking was a big hit with customers from the start. They loved being able to sit at their home computer and pay bills with a keystroke, or check account balances with ease. Today, electronic screens are smaller, but online banking, and its latest incarnation – mobile banking – is bigger than ever, said Bill Russell, executive vice president of retail banking at Bell State Bank & Trust, which is based in Fargo."

Banks embrace mobile as trend picks up speed
"Mobile banking is rapidly shifting some customers' expectations of the total banking experience, digital strategy executives in the industry say. 'Mobile is the fastest-growing channel in the company's history,' said Armin Ajami, vice president for mobile products management at Wells Fargo. 'It's far surpassed online.' The ratio of Americans using mobile banking, from downloadable apps to texting services, grew from one-fifth in 2010 to one-quarter in 2011 and to one-third in 2012, according to Javelin Strategy and Research. Bank executives say that in addition to new users, more people are using multiple services."

Banking now going mobile
"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 2-week-old iPhone, and with just a flick of his finger -- disappointment. Commerce Bank's mobile banking application doesn't accept deposits."

ING Direct adds remote cheque deposit to mobile app
"Banking at ING Direct just got more simple and convenient. Beginning today, clients can deposit cheques into their accounts remotely using Cheque-In, a new feature of the bank's existing mobile app. Cheque-In allows clients to take a picture of their cheque using their mobile device and have it deposited immediately into their ING DIRECT account. The feature is the first available on all major platforms, including Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod, Android Phone, Android Tablet, BlackBerry Mobile devices with BB10 OS, and tablets running Windows 8."

Want To Stand Out As A Retail Bank? Try Customer Centricity
"Just last month I decided to invest some of the cash I had in my bank’s money market with the bank’s brokerage services. I met with the rep at my local branch, signed the papers, and left smiling. Five days later, having received no paperwork – no nothing – I went back to the branch. My rep was on vacation, and the folks on the floor knew little about brokerage services. Excuse me?"

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 - 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 - Jan 6

Wells Fargo, Ally Bank See the Camera as Key to Mobile Banking
"A revolutionary as mobile banking has been, it's the camera that resides within smartphones that's lighting the fire underneath adoption drives at banks such as Wells Fargo (WFC) and Ally Bank. 'The camera is critical. If you look at the kinds of growth in mobile banking over the first couple of years, it was about the basics of mobile banking. But what's really exciting me and my team for the next couple of years is figuring out how to take advantage of the ability of the mobile device,' says Brian Pearce, senior vice president and head of the retail mobile channel in the digital channels group at Wells Fargo."

Bill Pay Coming to Mobile Banking!
"You will soon be able to access your MidWestOne Personal Online Bill Pay account through Mobile Banking. If you are enrolled in Personal Online Bill Pay and use either the downloadable application or mobile browser version of Mobile Banking, you will be able to pay bills from your mobile device! You will also be able to access Popmoney, our Person-to-Person payment service."

Bremer Bank to Expand into Mobile Banking and Payments with Mobiliti from Fiserv
"Fiserv, Inc. (FISV), a leading global provider of financial services technology solutions, today announced that Bremer Bank, an $8.1 billion bank headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., has selected Mobiliti™ as its mobile banking, payments and alerting engine. With Mobiliti from Fiserv, Bremer Bank customers will be able to securely access their financial information via their choice of SMS (text messaging), mobile browser and downloadable applications for Android™ and iPhone®."

Capital One boasts mobile banking through Web video initiative
"Capital One has rolled out an online video series that spotlights how fast and easy the company’s mobile banking options are. The primary goal behind the video campaign is to educate consumers on how to use the Capital One mobile banking application. Four videos are involved in the series with a fifth one planned for later this year."

Mobile Banking Updates - Dec 2

Banks Cling to iPhone as Consumers Take to Android
"Steve Jobs would be pleased. The thing that strikes you most when looking at Javelin's latest research on mobile banking and talking to its author, Mary Monahan, is the devotion banks still have to Apple's iPhone, even as Android devices lead in consumer market share, as they did last year. According to Javelin Strategy & Research's latest consumer survey (the group polled 3,000 consumers this quarter), Google's Android smartphones and tablets now claim 48% of the U.S mobile market, up from 34% last year. Apple's mobile device market share is 32% this year, up from 27% last year. (RIM dropped from 25% last year to 12% this year; Windows Mobile dropped from 13% to 8%.)"

Wells Fargo Expands Mobile Deposit Service Nationwide, Increasing Anytime, Anywhere Banking Convenience for Customers
"In a move to deliver innovation and added convenience in the rapidly growing mobile banking space, Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) today announced the nationwide expansion of Wells Fargo Mobile® Deposit. Using an Android or iPhone device, customers across the nation can easily deposit checks into their eligible Wells Fargo accounts by taking pictures of the front and back of the check."

Spike Mobile Deposit Adoption Rates With Free $5 Demo Checks 
"Old habits die hard. If you want people to try a new technology like mobile remote deposits, it may take cash bribes. Numerica Credit Union paid members $5 each to do just that. To teach people how easy it is to deposit checks using a smart phone, the credit union gave $5 checks away to those participating in live demonstrations."

How often do US expats use their mobile or smartphone for mobile banking?
"The world of the Internet and the world of mobile/smartphones are intrinsically linked and when you bear in mind the number of people who have access to a mobile phone on a constant basis this is perhaps the most powerful communication tool we have ever seen. As a consequence, many of the everyday services which are used to have now been transferred to the mobile Internet arena but is mobile banking as easy to transfer as general Internet use?"

Mobile Banking Updates - Sept 23

Mobile Banking Crosses the 300 Million Users Mark Worldwide as Financial Institutions Seek to Capture Developing Markets
"'Business case or not, financial institutions broadly know that mobile is no longer optional,' says a recent article in ABA Banking Journal. Mobile networks now cover between 85-90% of the world's population. The number of mobile phones in use around the world in 2011 reached six billion while the number of mobile banking users worldwide reached 300 million with adoption of the service in developed countries growing significantly."

Pew Report Finds Smartphone Users Eschewing Apps
"A new report from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life project may bolster the conventional wisdom in the credit union industry that security concerns could be impacting mobile banking adoption. A survey conducted among 2,254 adults this spring found that 54% of smartphone app users chose not to install an app when they discovered how much personal information was needed in order to use it, Pew researchers said."

Banks begin to mobilise the forces
"When St George’s head of eChannels Travis Tyler told the bank’s technology chief that he wanted to let people apply for credit cards through their mobile phone, the first reaction was disbelief. 'I told Travis ‘no one will want to do that’,' says St George chief information officer Dhiren Kulkarni."

Missouri Credit Union Survey Finds Nearly 40% Mobile
"Nearly 40% of 2,084 people who participated in an online survey said they are using mobile banking, according to a Consumer Attitude Report released by the Missouri Credit Union Association in St. Louis. The non-scientific, statewide survey also found that across all age groups (18 to 65+), Missouri consumers use mobile banking primarily for confirming payments, balancing checking accounts, transferring money, account alerts and paying bills."

10 Best Apps for Mobile Banking and Finance
"The major banks and brokerage firms are making mobile banking and trading easier than ever with apps on the iPhone, iPad and Android platforms. This way, you can be in control of your money even when you leave the bank’s branch or are not by your computer. From checking account balances to cautiously monitoring your 401(k) returns, we uncover the benefits of the major banking and stock apps…and they’re all free."

Wells Fargo, SunTrust Add Mobile Check Deposit To Banking Apps
"When it comes to personal banking, the smartphone can now accomplish most of what a bank teller or an ATM can do, aside from actually dispensing cash (iPhone 6 feature, perhaps?). Two more big banks, including Wells Fargo and Sun Trust, have revamped their banking apps to allow customers to make deposits on the go by snapping a photo of a paper check using a smartphone's built-in camera."

Branchless banking soaring high
"The growth momentum of the branchless banking sector - still in its early stages - ceases to amaze. The sector is leapfrogging ahead despite inherent sectoral difficulties and overall challenging macro conditions. The recently released fourth quarterly issue of the SBPs BB newsletter series shows yet another period of impressive all-round gains in the sector. To start with, the BB services penetration increased by a handsome 37 percent between April and June, for the registered number of mobile banking accounts is said to have reached 1.45 million as of June end. The push came from a 3.7 times quarterly increase in Level 0 (basic) accounts that now represent 25 percent of total accounts. "

Mobile Banking Updates - Jul 29

BofA, Wells Fargo rolling out new mobile banking services
"Starting Thursday, Bank of America will allow customers to make deposits by submitting a photo of a check through their smart phones, the bank's online and mobile banking executive, Aditya Bhasin, said on Monday. The No. 2 U.S. bank is also rolling out a service allowing customers to send money to other individuals using their email address or mobile numbers, as well as expanding a coupon service that can be used by mobile customers. Wells Fargo launched its mobile check deposit service earlier this year and will gradually expand it across the United States by the end of the year, said Brian Pearce, head of the retail mobile channel at the bank."

Wells Fargo Mobile® Banking turns 5
"Five years ago, Wells Fargo launched Wells Fargo Mobile® (wf.com), that enables customers to access their Wells Fargo financial relationship on mobile devices. Since then, customers have initiated more than one billion sessions using mobile and text banking."

Checking in on mobile banking
"A year ago I wrote a piece on The Future of Mobile Banking sharing my opinion that financial institutions were well positioned to row their own boats when it came to mobile payments. (By the way, let’s use the word “banks” as a catch-all phrase for every financial institution since it just rolls nicely off of the tongue and keyboard)."

EVB Expands Technology Services
"EVB, an independent, full-service community bank, is making it easier for customers to bank anytime, anywhere with a comprehensive suite of technology services including Online Banking; Mobile Banking; a new, full-featured website; and an official Facebook page."

Mobile Banking Updates - May 31

Bank of America Taking Mobile Banking By Storm
"Bank of America has slowly and steadily become a major force to be reckoned with in mobile banking. More customers, the financial titan said Thursday, now choose Bank of America to bank on-the-go more than any other bank. Over 10 million Bank of America customers are now using mobile banking, representing growth of nearly 3 million active users over the last 12 months."

Wells Fargo Launches Simplified Person-to-Person Money Transfer Service Nationwide
"Wells Fargo & Company WFC +0.16% today announced the launch of Send & Receive Money, a new service that simplifies Wells Fargo customers' payments to other Wells Fargo and Bank of America customers through online and mobile banking using an email address or mobile phone number. Wells Fargo customers no longer need to know their recipient's account number at Wells Fargo or Bank of America. Wells Fargo is the first bank to roll out nationally the clearXchange service for person-to-person payments."

San Antonio Federal Credit Union taps WRG and Vertifi for mobile banking
"The mobile solution, branded as GOTM from SACU, allows members to access their accounts anywhere and anytime with many enhanced functions including the ability to pay bills, transfer money, and deposit checks using the embedded camera on the smart phone. The check deposit feature, GoDeposit, is powered by Vertifi's DeposZip Mobile service, the leading household and business remote deposit service in the credit union industry."

U.S. Bank Tablet Banking App Built on Mobiliti from Fiserv
"The app is built on the Mobiliti Enterprise platform, which the bank also uses to support mobile banking, enabling integrated channel management and analytics. Fiserv, Inc., a leading global provider of financial services technology solutions, today announced that U.S. Bank's online banking customers now have access to an iPad(R) banking application (app) built on the Mobiliti Enterprise(TM) mobile banking and payments platform from Fiserv. The U.S. Bank app serves consumers' growing interest in tablet banking. According to the 2011 Fiserv Consumer Trends Survey, 45 percent of current and prospective tablet owners use or would like to use them for banking."

Nokia Dreams of NFC Image Sharing, Mobile Banking for its 808 PureView
"Nokia wants to enable image sharing on its 808 PureView using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. Say that tens time fast. Speaking with Engadget, the company expressed interest in the idea and said “picture sharing would be possible across devices.” Devices, meaning the feature won’t be exclusive to 808 PureView users. Who wouldn’t want to share their 41-megapixel mirror shots with friends using NFC? We’re guessing you’ll only be able to share low-res images, since those 41-megapixel shots exceed 100MB."

Mobile Banking Updates - Apr 15

mFoundry Launches Mobile Banking Solution for Conestoga Bank
"mFoundry, the most popular provider of mobile banking and payments solutions, today announced Conestoga Bank has successfully deployed its mBanking mobile banking solution. mFoundry's mobile banking solution is now used by nearly 10MM users across more than 650 financial institutions nationwide, including one-third of the top 50 banks in the U.S.

Conestoga Bank is the latest financial institution to choose mFoundry's mobile banking and payments platform to serve the mobile financial services needs of its customers. With its new mobile banking solution, Conestoga Bank is providing customers with a suite of mobile banking services that includes three platforms – a smartphone app, a mobile Web service and an SMS/text banking service. These options will enable Conestoga's users to do their banking from the widest range of mobile devices in the market today."

Targeting Mobile Banking Risks
"What emerging security challenges will new mobile devices and platforms pose for banks and credit unions? Brian Pearce and Amy Johnson shed light on Wells Fargo's approach to unique retail and commercial risks.

Johnson, who heads up strategy and execution for CEO Mobile, Wells Fargo's mobile service for commercial and corporate accounts, says managing mobile security has become increasingly fluid. Financial institutions must continually monitor new and evolving threats, and they must keep watchful eyes on new technology that should be applied to thwart those threats."

JPMorgan Chase & Co. : J.P. Morgan Empire for iPad app recognized for excellence in mobile banking
"In a record-breaking year for entries, J.P. Morgan took the top spot for "Best use of Mobile" at the FSTech Awards for its Empire for iPad application. The app, designed to respond to the Emerging Markets (EM) clients' real-time needs, is the only one of its kind for EM users. It provides mobile access to J.P. Morgan's real-time analytics, research, historical data and asset details, and offers customizable real-time market views and interactive charting."

Monitise Open for Business in Indonesia with Astra Graphia Group
"Monitise Asia Pacific announced today that its joint venture with a subsidiary of PT Astra Graphia Tbk, was ready for business. The joint venture - PT AGIT Monitise Indonesia - has successfully completed its installation in a Jakarta-based data centre to support the full spectrum of mobile banking, payments and commerce.

The platform will allow banks, mobile operators, retailers and other service providers to connect via a fully interoperable and secure network so they can deliver mobile services to both banked and unbanked customers. AGIT is providing both data centre services and local management support for the venture."