I recently attended the Net.Finance Conference, a gathering of financial services marketers from around the world. Much of the discussion was around the web channel and new technologies. Mobile Banking was the 'hot' new technology that seemed to be on everyones mind. And why not. Over 157 million U.S. adults carry cell phones with projections of 191 million by 2012(Javelin Strategy,2008). Many of the larger banks have gotten into mobile delivery, including SMS/Text Alerts, Browser-based mobile sites, or down-loadable applications. With the Generations X and Y having grown up with mobile devices, this seems like a natural fit. But adoption, to this point, has been pretty slow. Based on projections, it appears that this will be taking off in the next couple of years.
We are looking very closely at this service for our bank. We recently introduced an iPhone ATM/Branch Locator application that has close to 600 downloads since March. We think that is a pretty good indicator that our customers are ready for a more full service mobile banking solution. We'd love to hear from you. What do you think about mobile banking? Please share your thoughts. Thanks.