Consumer adoption of mobile banking has increased by almost 60 percent in 2011. Mobile banking has moved from a Nice-to-Have to a Must-Have Channel.

Mobile banking, once considered a ‘nice-to-have’, is now a ‘must-have’ for FIs who want to stay competitive and meet growing consumer demand for this channel,” said Mary Monahan, executive vice president and research director, Mobile, at Javelin Strategy & Research.

After two years of flat growth, consumer mobile banking jumped from 19 percent to 30 percent in 2011, corresponding to a rise in FIs offering mobile banking and an increase in consumer smartphone ownership.

The triple play – mobile banking via SMS text, mobile browser, and downloadable apps – is emerging as the new norm, with four out of five vendors now offering it. However, security remains a top concern, as almost half of consumers cite fear of security as the main reason they do not use mobile banking.

Vendors seeking market leadership will also need a thorough understanding of how to incorporate these trends into the development of their solutions. For example, the mobile banking industry is consolidating, with players bringing mobile technologies in-house.

Tablet adoption by consumers is growing at a tremendous rate, and FIs and vendors will need to provide access to mobile banking specifically designed for tablet users. Javelin also identified those operating systems that vendors will need to support, as well as the mobile banking features that consumers want.

Fiserv, FIS and Sybase received the highest scores. Fiserv won Best in Class, while mFoundry won Path to Mobility. With all these industry changes, it will be interesting to see how vendors fare in next year’s report.  

By Telecomlead.com Team
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