Mobile banking – do we need it?

Mobile phones turn from communication means into universal devices. Today they have almost displaced amateur cameras and dictaphones from the market having remained only semiprofessional niche for the highly tailored equipment. Mobile phones argue with i-phones and computers for the priority. But to catch up with the last ones is really hard for the phones due to their small size. Anyway to work with screen of even large smart phone is much more difficult than with LCD of the smallest notebook. In general today phones make if not everything but a number of things. And recently they encroach on the very sacred thing - wallet.

E-payments are becoming all-round event. And certainly mobile operators could not go by such profitable part of the virtual business. So what does mobile banking service offer and how much is it convenient and actual for the users?

It is worth to say that initially mobile banking assumed interaction of cellular operator and bank in which subscriber had account. In the pure form this type of services has flourished for today yet. Majority of trust-worthy banks such as “Sberbank”, “Alfa-bank”, “Moscow bank”, “Uralsib” and “ВТБ24” have contracts with leading cellular operators. It allows for bank’s client by paying small user charge to get to its mobile phone real-time information about topping-up or withdraw of funds from the bank account as well as to make payments from its bank account through mobile phone for such services as GPRS, cellular communications and make some municipal service’s payments. But list of services which may be paid through the phone is enough limited.

Now conception of mobile banking has been enlarged. Recently payment systems “QIWI” and “E-port” introduce “Mobile wallet” service which allows paying for purchases and services directly from the phone. To top up phone “purse” is possible by means of terminal. List of services to be paid through mobile wallet is enough big. It includes purchasing of goods in Internet-shops, buying of concert and other arrangements’ tickets, paying for transport and even for delivering of bouquet of flowers to your near and dear, etc. System allows transferring money from one account to another, making payment between private persons, buying playing currency for on-line games, paying virtually all on-line services. Leading cellular operators made a decision not to drop behind banks and terminal payment systems. At present they offer to the clients their own mobile banking services permitting to make some payments directly from phone’s account.

“МТС” and “Beeline” companies provide except classic mobile banking an opportunity to transfer money from one client’s to another client’s account, to pay for TV and Internet, long-distance calls, roaming, municipal services. Moreover “Beeline” gets a possibility to use mobile banking by clients having such tariff plans where payment is made after service receipt. You may get access to your bank account through a phone number of “Megaphone” company but this operator does not offer something more than classic mobile banking. Directly from the phone account you may pay only for services in operator’s brand-name shop located on operator’s site. To buy goods you have to use payment through the other services such as “E-port” or to make payments through a billing system.

Service of classic mobile banking is very convenient thing especially for those who are inclined to thoughtless expenses and get accustomed to pay in shops by means of card. SMS informs you how much funds have been withdrawn and what amount is on your account. Most of banks have extended this service with option of informing of the client about its deposit status: interest charges, money circulation on the accounts, starting of payments. But relevance of this service is questionable as at deposit opening bank client is provided without fail with interest charge and deposit payments schedule. Such notifications are necessary only for those ones who withdraw interests each month. The very asked-for service is payment of communication services and Internet from bank account through the phone. However in the most cases its setup takes a lot of time for “picking in” menu or conversation with an operator. Some banks activate this service only at receiving of separate written application from the client. As a result most of people prefer to pay for Internet by means of other, easier ways.

The second asked-for option is blocking of card account through the phone. But practice proves that mobile phones are lost much more often than plastic cards or they are lost together with credit cards.

Finally the most inconvenient service of classic mobile banking may be regarded payment for municipal services and TV. The fact of the matter is that need in “prompt” paying for municipal services, power or cable TV arises very seldom. Most of people prefer to do it without hurry, in quiet atmosphere and if possible try to get a receipt or paying slip. Therewith some banks ask a client to enter multi-digit number of payee’s personal account through the phone. A mistake in one figure may result to money sending to another place. Such service is not provided by each bank and cellular operators.

Advantages of classic mobile banking for a user consist in a possibility (if required) to use all funds having on bank account for services’ payment through the phone. But de facto this demand springs up very seldom.

Terminal-mobile payment systems such as “QWIVI” and “E-port” provide their clients wider range of services than banks. As stated above you may pay for everything through them beginning from ring-tones’ download and ending with purchasing of goods. Also list of services includes repayment of credits in banks. Operations with a mobile wallet almost do not differ from operations with ordinary virtual account.

But a mobile wallet demands for its usage mandatory availability of GPRS-communication i.e. valid Internet. And it means that this service is available only to the owners of the most modern and expensive phones. Lists of brands and models of the phones on which such application may be installed are published on sites of the companies providing such service. They are updated periodically.

Topping-up of a mobile wallet may be done through terminals or by means of wire transfer and money withdrawing may be made through bank. On the average “Mobile wallet” user loses up to 5% amount at “filling-up” money on the account and up to 7% at money withdraw.

Most of all cellular communication services, Internet, buying of music and pictures for mobile phones are paid through the phone. The second place occupies purchase of virtual currency for on-line games, payment of various Internet-services, purchase of paid and conditionally free software. Purchase of goods, municipal payments and credit payment are made through the phone very seldom. The reason of it is impossibility to present a documentary confirmation of payment.

Most of cellular operators offer their clients to pay some services with money placed “on phone” i.e. on phone number. List of things to be paid is enough modest in comparison with the one which is provided by “Mobile wallet”. It includes the same municipal payments, communication services, transactions between subscribes and payment of food being sold by means of billing-services. Advantage of this system includes a possibility to top-up an account from any source such as bank card, through terminal, by means of plastic card or in a payment center. Applications developed for operation with a phone account are simple and may be installed on medium-priced phones. Most of services are rendered through sms-service or by calling to operator’s call-center.

Without question the most reliable one for the average man is classic mobile banking as a stranger may get access to money only in case of phone loss by its owner. But even now an intruder has to overcome protection system for a start. Basic service package provided by a bank includes in general informing of a client about deposit status. And it is very difficult to get access to funds management.

On the other part exactly bank accounts have the most reliable protection system from cracking and virus attacks. Additionally each company pretending to work with a bank and its clients has passed through serious reliability verification that is a guarantee of service quality. In general classic mobile banking may be described with the proverb “The half is more than the whole!”.

The second place of user interests’ protection level may be placed with mobile banking providing by the cellular operators. In this case a company protects their clients’ accounts as it is not profitable for the company if money that can be spent on calls go to swindlers. Like banks the mobile operators try to work with the proven companies. But nobody will keep a user from sending sms to any doubtful short number. Features of mobile banking provided by cellular operators include impossibility to withdraw funds from the system by an ordinary client. You may spend it only on services of this operator or on billing-services. One more plus: none of intruders can “drain” more money than it is on phone account. That’s why phone swindles in general happen in billing field.

The most unreliable in protecting user’s money are beyond any doubt mobile wallets. Inherently they present the same e-payment system which may be cracked by any possible means. Except cracking of mobile wallets’ system it is worth for a user to fear its personal account opening, password theft and all other misfortunes which may overtake e-purse owner. And in this case “sophisticated” mobile phone may play a low-down trick with its owner. Because the more sophisticated phone - the more difficult its software and the more a possibility of its infection with viruses among which may be “spy” software. To protect a phone from harmful programs can special anti-viruses for mobile phones. Likely phone account nobody can “drain” from a wallet more funds than it is on it.

Many analytics pass an opinion that in future mobile banking will replace all payment types and even displace plastic cards from the market. However it will be not in the nearest future. The main problem at making payment through mobile phones is safety. Theoretically a phone as well as a plastic cad may appear in stranger’s hands. But to activate a plastic card without pin-code is very difficult. Shops having devices for money withdraw from cards without password require to present documents. Multi-level protection to access a phone account will complicate operations but its absence results to risk at service rendering. Until this contradiction is solved mobile banking will hardly develop further. Today’s relevance of mobile banking in the form in which it exists is doubtful. All payments making with its assistance may be done through Internet, computer or laptop. Very much so that further development of smart-phones and their integration with personal computers will make this service to go a-begging and it will be fully replaced with ordinary e-payment systems.

Tell your opinion