The Future of Mobile Banking is Bright
According to Ernest & Young, mobile banking is definitely the next big thing in the banking industry. Many industry observers think that it will become a routine for most banks to offer mobile banking within the next decade, just as is the case with using ATMs.
The number of people whose mobile devices will be linked to their bank accounts will be more than double by 2019. Currently, there are over 800 mobile devices accessing banking services, according to a report from Juniper Research. Emerging markets such as India, China and Bangladesh are leading the race towards mobile banking technology.
According to the report, nearly all the banks analyzed had some sort of mobile services with all of them providing apps for mobile banking. Statistics also show that mobile banking apps are among the most-downloaded apps in the world.
Banks now regard mobile banking as an indispensable source of additional revenue. Moreover, there is little they can do, given the fact that, the customers’ needs are increasingly becoming complex and stiff competition in the banking sector. Customers now need 24/7 services, and this requires mobile banking.
According to the report, there are also some business strategies that most banks hope to leverage on including branchless banking, micro insurance and digital wallets.
Most banks have announced that most of their customers are using their mobile devices to login to their mobile banking platform than through PCs. And concerning penetration levels, mobile banking is available in most regions in the world, including the developing regions.
A decreasing number of customers visiting their branches have been evident since the emergence of mobile banking.
Moreover, the banking sector is under pressure to much the convenience and effectiveness of financial services being offered by companies like PayPal.