plus 1, S'pore bank sees mobile users doubling - Zd Net Asia.com
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Posted: 11 Mar 2010 11:38 PM PST
update SINGAPORE--The Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Bank (OCBC) says its mobile banking user base has doubled every year since it launched the service in 2006.
Patrick Chew, head of delivery for consumer financial services at OCBC, said in a press briefing here Friday that mobile banking is moving from its early-adopter base to the mainstream audience. Transaction volumes have also doubled each year, reflecting increased trust in the security of mobile banking services, said Chew. He could not specify how many customers were using OCBC's mobile services, but noted that the figure has reached 30 percent of its Internet banking customer base. The rate of adoption for mobile banking is taking a faster upswing, compared to that of automated teller machines (ATMs) in the 1980s, and Internet banking in the 1990s, he noted. Chew also said the majority of the bank's mobile users are between the ages of 25 and 45, with 70 percent of them transacting on their phones at least once every two weeks, or more frequently. While early users turned to mobile banking primarily to perform passive tasks such as checking their bank balances, more users now perform transactions over their phones, including making bills payments, he said. He added that the volume of bill payments has quadrupled each month over the past year. "More users are managing their cash through their phones, beyond just monitoring bank balances," he said. In an e-mailed response to ZDNet Asia, Sandeep Lal, managing director and head of consumer e-business at local bank, DBS Bank, said: "We are in an advanced stage of implementing our mBanking [mobile banking] service in Singapore and we intend to lead in the space, too." Lal added that DBS has an Internet banking customer base covering 1.35 million users. Citibank launched its mobile service, called Citi Mobile, in Hong Kong toward the end of 2008. It extended this service to Singapore in August last year. The iPhone touch Chew also emphasized the impact of the Apple iPhone on the bank's increased mobile banking traffic. He noted a 10 to 20 percent rise in usage among OCBC customers after SingTel brought the device to Singapore, followed by a similar spike when competing telcos, StarHub and MobileOne, also began offering the iPhone. While OCBC has made mobile banking available via a Java applet since 2006, the arrival of more smartphones and generous data bundles have helped push mobile banking up, he said. He added that early banking through mobile phones involved a slower process because of lower data speeds, and faced barriers such as expensive cellular data costs and the need for users to manually configure some phone models to get online. Today, most phones are configured to get online out of the box, said Chew. In addition, OCBC is eyeing the slate space to continue the ramp up of mobile banking services, he said. Chew's team has plans to import a few sets of the Apple iPad once the product debuts next month, so the bank can perform tests on the device. |
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Posted: 11 Mar 2010 02:09 AM PST
March 11, 2010 --Housed at the World Bank, CGAP Technology Program working for poor people to get safe ways to send, receive, and save money WASHINGTON and LONDON, March 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- CGAP, an independent microfinance center based at the World Bank, today announced a new partnership with the UK Department for International Development (DFID) to expand ongoing global efforts to use information and communication technologies (ICT), especially mobile phones, to increase access to basic financial services for the poor. In addition to a 2006 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and CGAP funding, DFID will provide GBP 8 million to the CGAP Technology Program.  "Giving people access to financial services can help them lift themselves out of poverty. I am therefore pleased that the DFID-supported Technology Program at CGAP will work to improve poor people's access to financial services such as payments, savings, loans, and insurance. The Program will also support the delivery of social protection payments in developing countries and make the transfer of international remittances cheaper and safer," said UK Minister for Development Gareth Thomas. Today's announcement builds on more than six years of work on mobile banking and access to finance. In that time, CGAP has provided financing and technical advice to projects with more than a dozen providers in Asia, Africa, and Latin America to develop innovative banking solutions, and conducted in-depth policy assessments of 13 countries. CGAP has also published a series of white papers focusing on business models, client needs, and regulatory conditions, which can be accessed at http://www.cgap.org/technology. "The idea that a mobile phone could replace a bank branch has gone from concept to reality at an amazing pace. Now with support from DFID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, it's time to get beyond the early excitement of the past few years and shift into the build-out stage for mobile money so that millions of poor people everywhere get access to formal financial services," said Stephen Rasmussen, manager of the CGAP Technology Program. Communication technologies such as point of sale devices and ATMs, but also notably mobile phones, are increasingly connecting poor people to the financial grid. With CGAP technical support and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funding, CGAP's project partners in India, Mongolia, Pakistan and the Philippines have created the world's first mobile phone-enabled savings accounts aimed at reaching poor, unbanked people. "Savings is a highly neglected financial service available to the poor, and despite what most people may think, the poor do need a safe place to save money," said Amolo Ng'weno, deputy director at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. "Mobile phones and other front-end technology solutions can bring low-cost financial services to poor people, giving them opportunities to build financial security and improve their lives." Notes to editors -- A CGAP survey in 2009 found there are 2.7 billion people globally who don't have basic banking service, which matters because poor people need safe ways to send, receive, and save money. -- DFID's best known grant for financial inclusion was a challenge grant to Vodafone which helped create M-PESA, which in three years has reached more than 8.5 million people with mobile money transfer in Kenya. Key areas of focus for the technology program at CGAP -- Helping policymakers develop regulations that support effective use of mobile technologies for financial inclusion. -- Harnessing existing government payments and remittance flows to provide banking services to large numbers of unbanked people. -- Improving broad industry knowledge and practice in the areas of customers, agents, business models and regulatory frameworks. -- Demonstrating innovation and scale in branchless banking projects resulting from CGAP's technical assistance and/or grant funding. Facts about CGAP -- CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) is supported by over 30 development agencies and private foundations who share a common mission to alleviate poverty, and is housed at the World Bank. -- CGAP serves as technical advisor to the G-20 in the G-20's efforts to promote the use of technology to increase financial inclusion. -- Since 2007 CGAP has shaped 14 projects in nine countries with governments, telecom operators, microfinance institutions, and commercial banks. -- CGAP has led or partnered with others on market research covering more than 6,000 mobile money users in Kenya, Philippines, Brazil and South Africa. About CGAP CGAP is an independent policy and research centre dedicated to advancing financial access for the world's poor. It is supported by over 30 development agencies and private foundations who share a common mission to alleviate poverty. Housed at the World Bank, CGAP provides market intelligence, promotes standards, develops innovative solutions and offers advisory services to governments, microfinance providers, donors, and investors. More at http://www.cgap.org. About DFID The Department for International Development is the UK Government's department that manages Britain's aid to poor countries and works to get rid of extreme poverty. You can find out more at www.dfid.gov.uk. For CGAP Jim Rosenberg jrosenberg@cgap.org +1 202 473 1084 Una Gallagher Pulizzi upulizzi@cgap.org +1-202 473 8869 For DFID DFID Press Office +44 (0) 207 023 0600 SOURCE CGAP Copyright 2009 PR Newswire. All Rights Reserved |
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