International Mobile Banking Updates - Jul 11

New Mobile App Tool Encourages Canadians To Make Small Sacrifices For Long-term Savings
"ING DIRECT today announced a new addition to its existing mobile banking app for Apple® and Android™ devices. Called Small Sacrifices, this new tool helps Canadians visualize how foregoing everyday indulgences and redirecting that money through small incremental deposits can lead to big savings over the long term. In a new poll commissioned by ING DIRECT, 52% of Canadians surveyed said that if they could better visualize what foregoing their daily, weekly and monthly spending on non-essential purchases would save them over the short and long term, they would change their spending habits."

Boon to mobile banking in PH
"Mobile banking— one of the key tools rural banks regularly utilize to serve its clientele in the countryside—gets a much-needed shot in the arm after the United States Agency for International Development (Usaid) recently collaborated with Citigroup Inc. to further encourage the use of mobile banking in rural communities in several countries, including the Philippines."

Chart: Transactions Vs Amount Using Mobile Banking In India During Aug 2011-May 2012
"The number of transactions using mobile banking in India have gone up by 68.86% while the amount has increased by 102.65% taking into consideration the period from August 2011 to May 2012. The average amount per transaction stood at Rs 731.83, though we believe that the transaction information shared by the RBI with us includes both payment and non payment related transactions."

CBA launches new mobile banking innovations
"The Commonwealth Bank is making mobile banking more accessible to small businesses, rolling out a number of new innovations to its social payments app CommBank Kaching this week. Since launching Kaching for the iPhone last year, the app has been downloaded over 365,000 times and seen over $1 billion worths of transfer made. Now, the Commonwealth Bank has announced that the ‘peer-to-peer’ mobile payment app is now available for Google Android smartphones."

Use of Mobile Banking Services Expected to Triple in Finland
"According to a survey conducted by TNS Gallup, the use of mobile banking services is expected to triple in Finland. During the last 12 months, 11% of Finns aged between 16 and 60 years have used mobile banking services and 30% would like to use them in the future. Mobile service is seen as a complementary channel and will not, however, replace other service channels in the near future*."

Kenya's mobile payment revolution
"The mobile banking revolution has already happened, but it has nothing to do with Apple, Google, or Microsoft, and isn't in the US, Europe, or Japan. Instead, it started with a service called m-Pesa that launched in Kenya in 2007. Just three years later, the service had been used by more than half the Kenyan population and as of March of this year it had been used by 15 million people in the country."

BDO, Smart bring mobile banking to new heights 
"BDO Unibank Inc. has been making banking more convenient for the public with the use of mobile phone technology. With the mobile phone and a Smart prepaid card, BDO customers can practically do bank transactions anywhere, anytime. With the help of leading telecommunications provider Smart Communications Inc. (Smart), BDO introduced the Smart Money prepaid card that also serves as an automated teller machine (ATM), and a debit card."

Retail Banking in Slumdog City Seen Booming With Wireless
"For a good look at the future of retail banking -- and mobile-phone profits -- in the developing world, consider the competition between corporate giants in Dharavi, the Indian shantytown that was the setting for the film 'Slumdog Millionaire.' And also consider that they are copying a strategy already used, with great success, in Kenya.

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Mobile Banking Security - Jul 10

Tackling Emerging Mobile Risks
"The proliferation of mobile, particularly as it applies to mobile banking, has opened new revenue streams and enhanced customer and member experiences and convenience. But it also has opened new doors for fraud, and staying on top of those vulnerabilities is critical. So how are banking institutions addressing mobile security risks? Keith Gordon, who oversees authentication and security strategies for Bank of America's consumer online and mobile banking units, says most institutions are just now forging ahead in the mobile space, and new security gaps are areas for which they all must prepare, proactively."

UK consumers fail to trust security of mobile banking
"A survey of more than 2,000 UK adults has found that three-quarters believe that mobile banking technology is insecure. The study of 2,031 6-64 year olds in Great Britain by retail and banking solutions provider Wincor Nixdorf found that 72 per cent of consumers believe mobile banking services are insecure and unsafe."

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Mobile Banking Updates - Jul 7

High-Maintenance Gen Y Bank Customers
"The prevailing preference of Gen Y consumers for digital channels and electronic everything has led to the assumption that this generation is among the easiest for a financial institution to serve. Just give them access to online banking and a decent mobile app and they will serve themselves, right? Not exactly. Gen Y consumers (ages 18-32) can be high maintenance when it comes to their financial management habits."

The Mobile Banking Imperative
"Consumers are increasingly using mobile devices as banking tools — for everything from alerts and payments to budgeting and shopping. Indeed, mobile banking is no longer a value-added point of differentiation for banks and credit unions. It is fast becoming a basic consumer expectation."

SMALL BUSINESS MOBILE New channel could quickly catch on
"While about a third of small businesses currently use mobile banking, that’s likely to increase to 54% by 2015 according to Aite research. Banks need to be ready and able not only to offer the mobile channel to their commercial customers, but to tailor it with added value so that businesses would actually be willing to pay for the product. Tech Topics talks with Christine Barry, the Aite researcher who wrote the report 'Small-Business Mobile Banking: A Promising Opportunity.'"

Wells Fargo testing mobile deposit service in Nebraska
"Customers in Nebraska are among the first to get to test Wells Fargo's new mobile deposit service. The bank, one of the nation's largest, rolled out the service to customers in Nebraska, Kansas and the San Francisco Bay area last week after earlier launching it in Arizona and Washington. Wells Fargo customers can use the service through its mobile banking app. The app is available for Apple and Android-supported devices."

CUA launches mobile app
"CUA has launched a mobile banking platform with a mobile app for iPhones and Androids. The mobile app is part of the financial institution's broader strategy to extend and enhance services for customers. 'CUA Online Banking for Mobile is the first deliverable in a series of service enhancements that we will be rolling out to customers over the coming two years, as part of our core banking transformation program. This program will ultimately deliver a far superior and streamlined online banking experience,' Darrin Northey, CUA’s group general manager, distribution, said in a statement."

Essential Design Patterns For Mobile Banking
"Despite a great deal of mobile innovation, many creators of financial apps still copy their interface patterns from the desktop Web, even though these patterns are not as well suited to the mobile space. Small screens, custom controls, divided attention and fat fingers demand different thinking when designing for mobile."

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Mobile Banking Updates - Jul 6

Report: Customers leave FIs for conveniences like mobile banking
"Eleven percent of consumers are likely to switch primary financial institutions in 2012 in a quest for greater convenience and service, according to a new report announced this week by Javelin Strategy & Research. Giant banks face even larger defections, with Citibank and Bank of America at risk of losing twice as many customers. This could mean huge potential losses for FIs; switchers manage $675 billion in deposits, and manage deposits that are 30 percent higher than customers who are unlikely to switch."

Are Cash Withdrawals Without a Debit Card the Future of Personal Banking?
"This month has seen the announcement of ground-breaking mobile banking applications from both the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), a group which also includes British bank Natwest, and US-based ATM suppliers NRC Corporation. ‘There’s an app for that…’ Responding to the growing utilisation of smart phones (the market growth of smartphones was 63% last year), RBS is introducing its ‘Getcash’ software to the 2.4 million customers who already use the RBS and Natwest mobile banking application.

Why developing economies are embracing mobile banking
"More than half of the world's adults — 2.5 billion — are unbanked, according to research recently published by the World Bank Development Research Group. The American government, however, estimates that the U.S. is home to only 10 million of them, which means the vast majority of the unbanked live outside the country. And many of them reside in developing areas, such as India, where more than 40 percent of residents are unbanked, and Africa, where that number is at a staggering 80 percent."

CertusBank goes Mobile -- Expanded Online Offering
"CertusBank, N.A. introduces mobile banking for all retail banking customers across its footprint. Banking whenever and wherever you want - CertusBank Mobile Banking customers can reach us via text messaging and browser supported service. Convenient and secure - CertusBank Mobile Banking offers our full range of online banking services, including:"

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Mobile Banking Security - Jul 5

Mobile Banking: Emerging Threats, Vulnerabilities and Counter-Measures
"The banking industry has never seen such a fundamental change as mobile banking. Globally, millions of consumers are already using a wide array of mobile devices to conduct banking - and millions more are expected to go mobile in the coming months. But with that growth come a whole new set of threats: mobile malware, third-party apps, unsecured Wi-Fi networks, risky consumer behavior. And it does not matter whether an institution uses a proprietary or third-party mobile banking application - the bank owns the risks."

The Vulnerable Mobile App
"In the first quarter of this year, McAfee Labs found 8,000 samples of mobile malware. The same time last year, this number was in the hundreds. 'A burglar cannot rob 300 homes in one night, but a cybercriminal can attack 300 mobile devices at a time,' pointed out Dr. Markus Jakobsson, principal scientist, consumer security at PayPal, at the Mobile Banking and Commerce Summit in San Francisco last month. Not only are hackers more active and aggressive than ever, but consumers tend to be naive and trusting about applications on their mobile devices. 'Consumers are oblivious to the threat of malware on smartphones,' he says."

Enterprises Need to Review their Mobile Security Policies as Mobile Banking and Payments Increase in Popularity, says IDC Financial Insights
"The popularity and massive growth of smartphones for business use is forcing enterprises to sit up and rethink their security and defense mechanisms. In the report "Enterprise Mobile Device Security: Development Guidance to Tackle the Mobile Security Minefield" (Doc # FIN235403, June 2012), IDC Financial Insights examined the need for enterprise mobile security, especially within the mobile banking and payment arena, and discussed core measures for enterprises to boost mobile security, including mobile device management (MDM) and mobile application management (MAM)."

The Double Edged Sword of Mobile Banking
"The increased customer demand for mobile banking services carries increased fraud threats. FIs must wield this combination carefully to avoid fraud losses if they move too quickly or customer churn if they move too slowly. This white paper highlights:
* Current trends in mobile banking;
* Fraud threats and consumer behavior that result in increased risk;
* Strategies for preventing mobile banking fraud;
* Anomaly detection for mobile banking."

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International Mobile Banking Updates - Jul 2

Mobile Banking: Is it a Banking Solution To The Unbanked in Africa?
"Banking the unbanked especially in African countries has for along time been a major predicament. Due to the low level of technology, illiteracy, under development, and lack of proper awareness, the banking sector has been lagging unlike others such as IT and other sectors in the industry."

Emerging economies embrace banking innovations
"When it comes to reaching the unbanked in developing countries, there's room for all players. Worldwide, the unbanked population is estimated at 2.5 billion adults, including 80 percent in Africa, 40 percent in India and 64 percent in rural China. The established means of reaching out to the unbanked in such markets is the ATM. And research indicates that over the next five years, China, India and Africa will be three of four biggest markets for deployment of new or replacement ATMs — with North America rounding out the list."

Connected consumers go where banks haven't
"iWallet, PayPal, apps may grow faster than banking innovation. The banking industry has been given a warning: beware of new competitors stealing traditional financial services via technology. Consumers with mobile devices have the potential to access financial services outside bank offerings, says Bob Hayward, a keynote speaker at the Retail Financial Services Forum in Sydney last week."

Rise of the 'Smartphonatics'
"A recent report by ACI Research and the Aite Group identified a new category of smartphones users, or “Smartphonatics”, who change their financial, payment and shopping behaviour as a result of owning a smartphone. The report is based on a survey of 4 200 consumers, in 14 countries, in the first quarter of this year. The survey was conducted in order to gain insight into the worldwide adoption patterns for mobile banking and payments."

CIBC Continues its Leadership in Mobile Financial Services with the Launch of New Text Message Alerts
"CIBC today announced it has launched powerful new text message (SMS) customer Alerts, continuing its leadership in mobile financial services. The new Alerts bring important financial information to clients at a time and place that's convenient for them through their smartphone, or through email or online banking, to help clients manage their day to day finances. The Alerts range from reminding clients about upcoming credit card payments and due dates so they don't inadvertently miss a payment, to information on future-dated bills or transfers to ensure clients have adequate balances and can avoid late payment fees. Text message Alerts to mobile devices, combined with CIBC's award-winning Mobile Banking, empowers clients to effectively and conveniently manage their finances, wherever they are."

Sungard introduces new ‘solution’ to improve banking services
"As the global financial crisis continues to take its toll on financial institutions and countries worldwide, Sungard introduces its Ambit Core Banking Solution that aims to help banks improve their management processes. Ambit Core Banking Solution “is a universal banking system that provides comprehensive instrument and product coverage for retail deposits and lending, commercial banking, trade finance, and treasury management,” Sungard said in a statement."

Kiwibank’s iPhone App Puts A Service Rep In Everyone’s Pocket
"Kiwibank has released its mobile banking app for iPhones. The app is part of a suite of online innovations pouring from the bank intended to revolutionize how people bank online. Kiwibank’s first iPhone app has been much anticipated. While most of the world’s big financial institutions have had smart phone apps deployed for months, even years, Kiwibank was among the few holdouts. But it was worth the wait."

FNB banking app hits transactions landmark
"Since launching its mobile banking application on the 20th July 2011, FNB has seen over R4 billion in transactions go through the app. This is according to Michael Jordaan, who announced the figures this afternoon (26 June 2012) via his Twitter account."

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Mobile Banking Updates - July 1

Microsoft makes a move in mobile payments
"Somewhat sadly, Microsoft has been an afterthought when it comes to the mobile payments battle--until now. With Windows 8, the Redmond, Calif., giant seems bent on taking on Google as an NFC digital wallet provider, a rare chance for it to play the underdog. The company's Windows 8 launch presentation was heavy with plugs for its planned NFC component and it showed off a wide array of features in a bid to offer 'the most complete wallet experience.' That's a big challenge."

Mobile Banking vs. Online Banking
"Tamara here, AllClear ID Investigator. Financial institutions have been working for years to make banking more accessible and convenient for their members. It started with ATMs, then with Internet banking, and now mobile banking. Mobile banking is convenient in that with a phone that has the capabilities, starting with text transaction processing and now moving to online access. Let’s compare mobile banking versus Internet banking."

Big Study Examines Retail Banking Channel Preferences
"Cisco has released findings from a broad, multi-channel study, gauging consumer preferences for branches, mobile, video and social. Released through its Internet Business Solutions Group, Cisco’s survey encompassed some 5,300 consumers across eight developed- and emerging countries: US, UK, Canada, Germany, France, Brazil, China and Mexico."

Tablet Interest Builds in Next Phase of Mobile Usage
"Just as one format for mobile banking enters the mainstream, another form is beginning its stampede across the financial services landscape. The word among some industry leaders is that, suddenly, apps for tablet computers are a must- have. Transformational as mobile phones have proven, the changes now are accelerating with tablet computers such as Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle Fire."

Banks to invest more in mobile
"With interest growing in mobile banking, retail banks plan to invest more in mobile technologies, according to a new report by Forrester Research. The mobile investments will focus on alerts, remote deposits and person-to-person payments, according to the survey conducted by Forrester Research of members of Consumer Bankers Association. Almost 20 percent of U.S. online adults are active mobile bankers, according to Forrester."

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