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 Shopping for Holiday 2010 Skyrockets
With some Black Friday reports coming in from retailers, anecdotal reports have shown significant increases in mobile shopping activity following Thanksgiving this year.
According to the WSF blog, Ruelala.com attributed 19% of sales this weekend to mobile phones, a 10x increase over last year. Another online retailer, Gilt.com said that about 15% of total revenue came from mobile commerce over the same period, while eBay reported a 30% rise in mobile activity over the previous year.