Mobile phones have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. Given the rapid pace of developments in the area of mobile finance, the Federal Reserve Board began conducting annual surveys of consumers’ use of mobile financial services in 2011. This 78-page report, “Consumers and Mobile Financial Services” (March, 2015) examines trends in the adoption and use of mobile banking, payments, and shopping behavior and how the emergence of mobile financial services affects consumers’ interaction with financial institutions.
Mobile Payments are Game Changer for Africa
Writing in his latest annual “Gates Notes” letter, Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates highlighted the digital banking sector and observed that smartphones and mobile technology would define banking in Africa, especially in those communities where the cost of banking and a lack of infrastructure remain major barriers to entry.
Gates’ view is reflected in part by figures from technology company Ericsson. It indicates that mobile is the communication tool of choice in Africa where competitors are scrambling to tap into the “unbanked” market by providing platforms for money transfers using mobile technology.
Read more, via IOL Business.