Mobile phones and the Internet are changing the banking

[micromoney]

The emerging markets have outpaced the mature one’s development significantly, experts say. Let’s check out two of the major trends.
Smartphones golden age
The first trend implies that emerging market buyers are shifting from PC, laptops, and tablets with a high penetration in mature countries right towards a new generation technologies. That means that smartphones there have been adopted not only before PCs but instead of them. Due to continuous smartphone penetration on the market, the growth in a number of mobile phones in emerging markets is proceeding exponentially. According to GSMA Intelligence, for instance, it stands for 76% in Taiwan and for 70% in Myanmar. The reason is that smartphones in Asia have recently become rather affordable and its cost varies just from $30 to $50. Moreover, the capabilities of smartphones processors are on par with PCs’ processors, and the features sometimes wider — photo shooting, for example.
Contrary to all the rules
The second trend covers rising of the Internet penetration even among people with very low income. The emerging markets show interesting statistics: usually, they have a high percentage of the unbanked and underbanked population and, at the same time, the high level of penetration of the Internet and mobile services.

For example, Asian region overall is expected to become the world’s fastest-growing Internet region by 2020. While Internet industry is flourishing, only 27% of the South East Asian population have a bank account. In 2017, China has 731 million internet users and 53,1 %t of them are online. The country demonstrates a fast development pace but still has 21% of unbanked. In Myanmar, the Internet traffic growth is 58% and, at the same time, Myanmar has one of the lowest banking penetration rates in Asia, with over 70% of adults (aged 15+ years) unbanked.
Traditional banks and alternative fintech projects battle
What is more surprising, these trends have the strong impact on the totally different industries, for example, on the financial markets. Emerging market consumers, in the same way, skip traditional banking services and move to online wallets, payday loans cards, P2P credits and to online applications for loans that can be taken via smartphones! That happened since people found it is much easier and faster to do it by phones, however, this fact formed a new trend in financial services. As mobile and Internet services do not need paper documentation, therefore, neither financial services nor their customers need such traditional creditworthiness proofs as papers, credit histories, collaterals, persons to vouch and so on. All the traditional banks’ requirements make sense as they are just trying to de-risk their ​businesses, especially for the emerging markets banks.

In Kenya, for example, M-Pesa financial service lets customers store, transfer and send money via simple text messages. Usage of WeChat Pay and Alipay apps is approximately 7 times greater than average of top five conventional banking apps in China!

However, at the same time, alternative mobile services market is growing rapidly making all the classic rules senseless because the fintech projects found the way not only to accept applications online from mobile devices but to assess their customers online too.

For instance, the blockchain company MicroMoney has developed the mobile scoring system based on neural networks technologies that allow estimating of customer's creditworthiness remotely just having an access to a customer’s smartphone data. So its clients don’t have to collect a pile of papers, to provide a collateral and a one to vouch, or to wait for the bank approval. No struggle to prove that they are reliable credit customers or wasting the time if they had no credit history before (because for a bank it means the obvious rejection). MicroMoney’s mobile scoring system after getting the access to mobile data explores around 12 000 different parameters of data stored on a phone (SMS, contacts, social accounts data, searches and purchases, and even a music a user likes) within just several minutes and approves (or disapproves) a loan. In case it approved, MicroMoney immediately sends money right to a client’s e-wallet.

With the trends we mentioned before, it’s obvious that the banking industry will not stay the same anymore. Moreover, these changes give the banks the key to the audience untapped before — to the unbanked and underbanked people in emerging markets and worldwide.

[Palmerson]

M-pesa is used by the natives. They have in the village may not be TV, but when they go into town for food, they are calculated using your mobile phone. Bitcoin does in this respect, more opportunities, but in Kenya, the government supports non-cash payments, while in developed countries banks and governments are parasites on their currencies and fighting against any competition in the field of Finance.

[Mometaskers]

M-pesa is used by the natives. They have in the village may not be TV, but when they go into town for food, they are calculated using your mobile phone. Bitcoin does in this respect, more opportunities, but in Kenya, the government supports non-cash payments, while in developed countries banks and governments are parasites on their currencies and fighting against any competition in the field of Finance.

I've heard of M-pesa before, does it accept bitcoin and other currencies as well? It would be nice if the mobile wallet can handle other cryptos in addition to bitcoin and fiat. At least they can convert cryptos during hikes so they won't be caught penniless during plunges.

[dothebeats]

Online banking is the thing now in Canada, US and several other people. As an associate of Bell Canada, most of our customers don't really go to their local bank to create some paperwork to send their payment, which is the case for the last decades. Also, the fact that almost everyone agreed to receive e-billing is a strong statement that we are tied to the digital trends today especially with our banking and finance. Bitcoin is a strong contender in the field of finance if, like M-Pesa, it is implemented with SMS and not just tied to the internet where it can only reach a certain point. Agree or not, our money is tied to the digital age, as we are tied with our smartphones and internet.

[GreenBits]

Online banking is the thing now in Canada, US and several other people. As an associate of Bell Canada, most of our customers don't really go to their local bank to create some paperwork to send their payment, which is the case for the last decades. Also, the fact that almost everyone agreed to receive e-billing is a strong statement that we are tied to the digital trends today especially with our banking and finance. Bitcoin is a strong contender in the field of finance if, like M-Pesa, it is implemented with SMS and not just tied to the internet where it can only reach a certain point. Agree or not, our money is tied to the digital age, as we are tied with our smartphones and internet.

good point. cell phones are more ubiquitous than identification papers and personal computers in America, at least. i really dont know anyone under the age of 35 that doesnt have a cell phone, to be honest thats more like 70 or 80 now. if you want to use something that is tied to someones identity much better than a forgeable piece of paper, then this is for the best

when we embrace microtransaction systems in the future, we will look at bitcoin as the model. but i dont think bitcoin will be the coin they use to implement this

[Pearls Before Swine]

when we embrace microtransaction systems in the future, we will look at bitcoin as the model. but i dont think bitcoin will be the coin they use to implement this

I don't think so either, but neither do I think bitcoin is heading
for extinction.  And hell, I don't know anyone who doesn't have a cell
phone, and I'm acquainted with a lot of older folks.  They really are everywhere
and everyone has them.  I'm old enough to remember rotary dial pay phones
and it's astonishing how much cell phones have changed everything.

[VegaAISolutions]

the day I see the native integration of Bitcoin into any banking application via their website or their mobile application I'll believe that mobile technology and blockchain Technology have truly changed the way that banking works. until then all I see is more ruthless extensions of their advertising campaigns and different ways to enable people to spend more money than they have and get lower Returns on their savings then they should be getting. make no mistake the banking industry is a massive scam and everything involved with it including its mobile applications exist just to further the scam and its ability to suck your average user in.

while you use your mobile phone to scan your check, and use your convenient quick pay system to send money to your friends, and use their convenient method of notifying you about your balance via your mobile application, the bank is collecting a massive amount of Interest by holding on to your money and passing less than 0.2% of that back to you, and that's only if you have your money in savings.


why don't you use the ultimate Mobile Banking technology and be your own bank with Bitcoin.

[Hydrogen]

The main concern with smartphones are them being the weakest link in a chain, from a security and attack vector perspective.

It is known that many smartphones may have backdoors built into them which allow for monitoring/data mining/state surveillance. Here is an example of this in action:

Pre-installed Backdoor On 700 Million Android Phones Sending Users’ Data To China

WASHINGTON — For about $50, you can get a smartphone with a high-definition display, fast data service and, according to security contractors, a secret feature: a backdoor that sends all your text messages to China every 72 hours.

Security contractors recently discovered preinstalled software in some Android phones that monitors where users go, whom they talk to and what they write in text messages. The American authorities say it is not clear whether this represents secretive data mining for advertising purposes or a Chinese government effort to collect intelligence.

International customers and users of disposable or prepaid phones are the people most affected by the software. But the scope is unclear. The Chinese company that wrote the software, Shanghai Adups Technology Company, says its code runs on more than 700 million phones, cars and other smart devices. One American phone manufacturer, BLU Products, said that 120,000 of its phones had been affected and that it had updated the software to eliminate the feature.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/16/us/politics/china-phones-software-security.html?mcubz=3

Here's another example of smartphones not being the most secure platform:

An Obscure App Flaw Creates Backdoors In Millions of Smartphones

FOR HACKERS, SCANNING for an open “port”—a responsive, potentially vulnerable internet connection on a would-be victim's machine—has long been one of the most basic ways to gain a foothold in a target company or agency. As it turns out, thanks to a few popular but rarely studied apps, plenty of smartphones have open ports, too. And those little-considered connections can just as easily give hackers access to tens of millions of Android devices.

A group of researchers from the University of Michigan identified hundreds of applications in Google Play that perform an unexpected trick: By essentially turning a phone into a server, they allow the owner to connect to that phone directly from their PC, just as they would to a web site or another internet service. But dozens of these apps leave open insecure ports on those smartphones. That could allow attackers to steal data, including contacts or photos, or even to install malware.

"Android has inherited this open port functionality from traditional computers, and many applications use open ports in a way that poses vulnerabilities," says Yunhan Jia, one of the Michigan researchers who reported their findings at the IEEE European Symposium on Security and Privacy. "If one of these vulnerable open port apps is installed, your phone can be fully taken control of by attackers."

https://www.wired.com/2017/04/obscure-app-flaw-creates-backdoors-millions-smartphones/

There are other potential issues with smartphones in financial transactions.

There's a push for lower smartphone encryption standards by intelligence agencies. There's the potential for cellphone signals being wirelessly intercepted and decoded to mine passwords and other personal data. As usage of cellphone based payment and monetary transactions increase, the number of viruses and malware which target cellphone platforms are also likely to propagate.

Smartphones are very convenient. Whether they can realistically be secured is another question.

[Kaller]

I must say being able to login to online banking on my phone has really made my life a LOT easier!

[Granxis]

I can hardly remember when the last time I went to the bank, the banking system in the digital world was influenced by the system, maybe easier but we can not touch the real money

[fishbonez11]

Indeed! Mobile phones and the internet are changing banking. No need to fall in line anymore for whatever transaction, passbook, etc. Automated teller machines (ATMs) already made an advancement in banking because we can do almost everthing there too, but internet banking pushed it even more. Now we can check our balance online, make fund transfers, pay bills, buy investments, apply for loan and many more. Now I only line up in banks to transfer money from one bank to the other (to save up the transaction fee) and for check encashment/deposits. Now we also have wallets for our cryptocurrencies, whicch basically can also do the same thing as pay bills, merchants and the like.

[CryptoBry]

The proliferation of the mobile smartphones is changing the landscape of the online world. Right now, anybody can be online anywhere anytime as the gadget is now on our very own hands and we can bring it anywhere unlike with PC and laptop which can be bulky at times.

It is not actually banking that is being changed or disrupted by this mobile trend but also other industries as well. Right now, a business can have a mobile presence with the use of mobile apps and this is the same technology which many banks are riding on.

[tengek37]

Can not avoid mobile phones and the internet is changing everything, not only the world of banking but also change all sides of life. In the world of banking itself these two things are very influential as the development of technology, to make payments now many applications based on "e-" such as e-money, e-food, and more. Now you do not need to go to the bank or post office to make money transfers, just open your mobile phone and use e-banking or mobile banking application. Very easy

[Yuhee]

Can not avoid mobile phones and the internet is changing everything, not only the world of banking but also change all sides of life. In the world of banking itself these two things are very influential as the development of technology, to make payments now many applications based on "e-" such as e-money, e-food, and more. Now you do not need to go to the bank or post office to make money transfers, just open your mobile phone and use e-banking or mobile banking application. Very easy

This is just part of any evolution we are going to have. Usually i too am almost using phone to pay services such as electric bills and online applications. Almost all businesses have technology as part of there commodities. Even millionaires made there money from these technology that is virtual. Everything is in our pocket if you know offcourse what you are storing in our phone because its not always that these online services are working.

[JTASSOCIATES]

Technology means todays invention tomorrow it is old so "CHANGES ONLY NEVER CHANGE" Mobile phones and the Internet are not changing it is already changed the banking process and it is getting more organized.

I remember earlier I have to wait in queues for hour inside bank to transfer money now it is mater of seconds because of mobile and internet only.

We have to accept the mobile apps in Bitcoin so that it will be more comfort and more efficient.

In future If (sure) Bitcoin itself convert its activity into Banking style that the real need of moble phones and the internet.

Expecting the best results in Bitcoin using mobile phones and the internet are changing the banking.

[syaripudin]

In the era of all-digital today can not be denied that now more and more people who do all sorts of transaction activities using Internet technology as the ingredients. of course this can not be separated from gaget as a means of payment this is what makes more and more people make transactions with the Internet because of course ease in doing transactions with internet systems that can be obtained by crypto users. by doing all forms of transactions that use the internet is unnecessary things we spend money that is usually done in general. and now there are many people who come out of the banking system that they think the banking system is a system that brings too much more if compared with the existing crypto system is only if we do activities of crypto, of course we can not see the form of real money as in general yes of course this is because crypto is an electronic currency that can not be seen clearly.

[chip211]

It's not as simple as you think, wallets online can never replace banks, the e-wallet is really convenient and the electronic money is the same, but it has certain risks that are not absolutely safe, but the bank can handle it all so it can not be replaced.

[Don Pedro Dinero]

I’ve been using online banking for around 7 years. In the beginning, I was doing transactions from my computer but nowadays I do everything from my mobile: checking accounts, transfers, buying funds, stocks... I even make my everyday payments from my mobile, instead of using my credit or debit cards.
This has brought about many people in the banking industry being made redundant, as many customers don’t go to their local branch to ask for those transactions for being done.

Mobile phones are common even in poor countries, so I’m not surprised this is happening even there.

This is good for us because people who use online banking are more likely to start using cryptos in the future, unlike traditional bank customers.

[Pleione527]

The growth and development and technology helps many individuals to make their lives more convenient and part of is the introduction of mobile banking system thru this you can do shopping and paying bills directly using your phone and internet connection it eliminates the process of going to the payment center just a click and all done and now online wallet for bitcoin is now offering such service called "be your own bank system" much convenient unlike other banks

[Kotone]

The emerging markets have outpaced the mature one’s development significantly, experts say. Let’s check out two of the major trends.
Smartphones golden age
The first trend implies that emerging market buyers are shifting from PC, laptops, and tablets with a high penetration in mature countries right towards a new generation technologies. That means that smartphones there have been adopted not only before PCs but instead of them. Due to continuous smartphone penetration on the market, the growth in a number of mobile phones in emerging markets is proceeding exponentially. According to GSMA Intelligence, for instance, it stands for 76% in Taiwan and for 70% in Myanmar. The reason is that smartphones in Asia have recently become rather affordable and its cost varies just from $30 to $50. Moreover, the capabilities of smartphones processors are on par with PCs’ processors, and the features sometimes wider — photo shooting, for example.
Contrary to all the rules
The second trend covers rising of the Internet penetration even among people with very low income. The emerging markets show interesting statistics: usually, they have a high percentage of the unbanked and underbanked population and, at the same time, the high level of penetration of the Internet and mobile services.

For example, Asian region overall is expected to become the world’s fastest-growing Internet region by 2020. While Internet industry is flourishing, only 27% of the South East Asian population have a bank account. In 2017, China has 731 million internet users and 53,1 %t of them are online. The country demonstrates a fast development pace but still has 21% of unbanked. In Myanmar, the Internet traffic growth is 58% and, at the same time, Myanmar has one of the lowest banking penetration rates in Asia, with over 70% of adults (aged 15+ years) unbanked.
Traditional banks and alternative fintech projects battle
What is more surprising, these trends have the strong impact on the totally different industries, for example, on the financial markets. Emerging market consumers, in the same way, skip traditional banking services and move to online wallets, payday loans cards, P2P credits and to online applications for loans that can be taken via smartphones! That happened since people found it is much easier and faster to do it by phones, however, this fact formed a new trend in financial services. As mobile and Internet services do not need paper documentation, therefore, neither financial services nor their customers need such traditional creditworthiness proofs as papers, credit histories, collaterals, persons to vouch and so on. All the traditional banks’ requirements make sense as they are just trying to de-risk their ​businesses, especially for the emerging markets banks.

In Kenya, for example, M-Pesa financial service lets customers store, transfer and send money via simple text messages. Usage of WeChat Pay and Alipay apps is approximately 7 times greater than average of top five conventional banking apps in China!

However, at the same time, alternative mobile services market is growing rapidly making all the classic rules senseless because the fintech projects found the way not only to accept applications online from mobile devices but to assess their customers online too.

For instance, the blockchain company MicroMoney has developed the mobile scoring system based on neural networks technologies that allow estimating of customer's creditworthiness remotely just having an access to a customer’s smartphone data. So its clients don’t have to collect a pile of papers, to provide a collateral and a one to vouch, or to wait for the bank approval. No struggle to prove that they are reliable credit customers or wasting the time if they had no credit history before (because for a bank it means the obvious rejection). MicroMoney’s mobile scoring system after getting the access to mobile data explores around 12 000 different parameters of data stored on a phone (SMS, contacts, social accounts data, searches and purchases, and even a music a user likes) within just several minutes and approves (or disapproves) a loan. In case it approved, MicroMoney immediately sends money right to a client’s e-wallet.

With the trends we mentioned before, it’s obvious that the banking industry will not stay the same anymore. Moreover, these changes give the banks the key to the audience untapped before — to the unbanked and underbanked people in emerging markets and worldwide.

Of course, given how all the people are on the go more and kore are integrating tablets and phones and laptops to give people more access to their accounts and their money while not being able to go physically to banks which is also a lot easier to people.