High demand for corporate mobile banking

A survey indicates that 65 per cent of treasurers are interested in adopting mobile services.

Fundtech, a market leader in global transaction banking solutions, and the Aite Group, a leading independent fi nancial research and advisory fi rm, have released a report entitled “Th e Business Case for Off ering Corporate Mobile Banking Services”, based on the fi ndings of a global survey of more than 300 treasury executives.

That revealed high demand amongst treasurers for mobile corporate banking services, with approximately two-thirds of businesses at least “somewhat likely” to use mobile corporate banking services to perform basic transactions such as checking balances or transferring funds.

More than 40 per cent of respondents described themselves as “likely” or “very likely” to do so. Even more importantly, more than 55 per cent of treasurers expressed interest in performing more advanced functions such as approving transactions and initiating payments via a mobile device.

 Mobile banking technology has primarily been off ered to the consumer/ retail channel but survey results indicate that corporate mobile banking presents a new, untapped opportunity for banks.

Interestingly, approximately 49 per cent of businesses are willing to pay for the convenience of mobile cash management capabilities, pointing toward the ability for banks to generate fee-based revenues to cover some of the cost associated with this kind of technology investment.

Christine Barry, research director at the Aite Group and author of the report, said, “Although banks have been slow to extend mobile corporate banking to their business customers, the survey fi ndings clearly indicate that there is growing demand for this kind of service.

 What was most surprising was the percentage of respondents who would pay for such a service. In an environment where banks need to identify innovative new ways in which to attract and retain clients, now may be the right time for banks to consider investing in mobile banking platforms for their corporate customers.”

Other survey fi ndings included:

•  the largest opportunity for corporate mobile banking exists among middlemarket customers (annual revenues up to $10bn)
•  security is a concern for more than 65 per cent of treasury executives
• half of treasury executives surveyed view “anytime, anywhere” access to banking information as the primary benefi t of corporate mobile banking
• Fundtech is launching Mobile ACCESSplus, the fi rst mobile platform designed specifi cally for corporate electronic banking. It is an extension to Fundtech’s Services Platform, a rich SOA (Services Oriented Architecture) platform designed for transaction banking.

“Th e survey fi ndings validate what we have been hearing from CFOs and treasurers for some time now and the reason why we are launching Mobile ACCESSplus,” said Rhys Jones, head of innovation at Fundtech.

“With executives constantly on the road or away from their desks, they need to be able to perform both basic and advanced functions on a mobile device to make sure workfl ow is uninterrupted and operating smoothly. We’re excited to be fi rst to market with the only corporate mobile banking platform in the industry and look forward to rolling out these innovative new services in partnership with our banking clients.”