Banking is a key service that few can do without, and in the future, mobile banking solutions will become fairly standard.
This is according to Steven Ambrose, MD of Strategy Worx, who says mobile banking has only just begun its upward trajectory.
Ambrose adds that the growth of mobile banking solutions has been the fastest in SA and other developing countries. He says the development of the mobile platform is largely due to the lack of fixed-line infrastructure in these countries. Moreover, he notes, as access to the Internet becomes more critical, mobile access will grow exponentially faster than fixed-line access.
First National Bank (FNB) recently unveiled a mobile banking solution, Pay2Cell, which allows payments to be made directly into an account, using only the recipient's cellphone number.
According to Ravesh Ramlakan, CEO of FNB Cellphone Banking Solutions, the service is currently only available to FNB cellphone banking customers, but FNB hopes to expand Pay2Cell to include other banks.
With the increase in mobile banking, several banks have introduced mobile solutions. Standard Bank, Absa and FNB offer cellphone banking solutions that allow customers to carry out a number of services. These include checking balances and mini-statements, purchasing airtime, transferring money between accounts, and making payments to beneficiaries.
In addition, both Absa and FNB offer services that allow their customers to make payments to individuals without bank cards, using their cellphone numbers. These payments can then be accessed via the banks' respective ATMs, without the need for a bank card.
Ramlakan says over 7 000 transactions have taken place since the project went live about 10 weeks ago. He adds that FNB hopes to move the solution to online banking, and expand it industry-wide.
Ambrose predicts this technology will take off if all banks allow payments in this manner.
Additionally, Ambrose says, other banks can be expected to respond to this solution. He explains that the advantage of FNB's solution is ease of use. “Using the payees' cell number is really clever,” says Ambrose.
According to him, the service is as secure as any electronic platform, and FNB has also been “smart” by specifying a reversal procedure if users of the service get the cellphone number incorrect.
Pay2Cell can be accessed by dialling *120*321# , or via fnb.mobi. It can be found under Main Menu, Banking, Payments and Pay2Cell. Costs are based on the account holder's fee structure, and normal account fees apply.
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