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 Phones Leapfrog Traditional Financial Institutions in Developing World
When a devastating earthquake struck Haiti in January, phones enabled Haitians to withdraw cash at local banks or access account funds to pay for groceries.
The spawning of a “mobile money” market in Haiti illustrates how mobile funds-transfer applications could develop elsewhere. Now card companies and mobile carriers in various parts of the world are coming together to meld the popularity of cell phones with access to financial services.
via Worlds of Differences in Mobile Money Strategy – American Banker Article.
Mobile Banking in Africa
Mobile operators and industry experts see the mobile payment, also called Mobile Banking, MBanking, M-payment or SMS
Banking, as the future of a cashless society.
The mobile payment works by storing a consumer’s credit or debit card within the SIM card and employing the near-field communication (NFC) technology1 or sending money by text message. Clients can convert cash into electronic money (and vice
versa) through any retail outlets and then use their mobile phone to instantaneously send and receive money wherever they have cell coverage.
via Financial Technology Africa | Will You Pay By Credit Card? No, I Have My Mobile Thanks.