International Mobile Banking Updates - June 25

Ethiopia: Mobile Banking Game-Changer in Ethiopia
"New regulations will bring m-banking to Ethiopian consumers, but limits on the companies involved and how transactions must be managed could slow growth. On 1 January 2013, the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) issued a long-awaited directive that allows transaction-based mobile banking. This is a report by theafricareport.com. Four major players Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, M-BIRR, BelCash and Zemen Bank's z-Birr are expected to begin operations later this year, making Ethiopia one of those African countries adopting this technology."

UAE adopts measures to encourage wider use of mobile banking
"The central bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has urged the two local telecom providers Etisalat and Du to slash fees for mobile phoning and SMS services in order to increase the usage of mobile banking, local news agency WAM reported Tuesday. The central bank issued a statement on mobile banking following a meeting hosted by central bank governor Sultan Al Suwaid on Monday."

Think like Amazon to beat superficial mobile banking: ANZ Bank CIO
"Banks will "need to operate more like Amazon" as they fight technology-driven loss of intimacy with services tailor-made to prevent customer churn, the CIO of one of the Asia-Pacific region's largest banks has advised. 'While mobile banking may improve [customer interaction] channels, they also carry the risk of allowing the customer relationship to become more remote if the transactions are purely transactional,' ANZ Bank CIO Anne Weatherston told FST Media's recent Future of Banking and Financial Services Technology conference in Melbourne, Australia."

Banks start charging money for SMS alerts, mobile banking
"In another example of cartelization among bankers, several banks have increased or started imposing charges for transaction alerts through SMS as well as for mobile banking. As usual, private lenders have taken the lead, which soon would be followed by nationalized banks. There is no free lunch says a popular adage. Our banks, having lured consumers with ‘free’ services, have now started charging for them or hiking already existing fees to fatten their bottomlines. So far this year, many banks have started charging for SMS alerts on transactions and hiked the annual fees on debit/credit cards. A few banks have even increased charges to deposit cash in your accounts. The list includes large banks such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Canara Bank. Here are some areas in which charges have been increased."

Kenyan banks face challenges with secure online transactions
"A weak legal regime, fraud and security weaknesses have stymied the growth and adoption of online banking in Kenya, according to industry insiders. International banks such as Standard Chartered and Barclays have ventured into online services but not as successfully as in other markets. Standard Chartered recently launched a paperless branch, where all transactions are virtual, while Barclays launched a banking app aimed at attracting more mobile and online users."