CommBank wins Mobile Banking award for Netbank
MOBILE BANKING PROVIDER OF THE YEAR: COMMONWEALTH BANK
Australia has the sixth most concentrated smartphone market in the world after Singapore, South Korea, Norway, Spain and Sweden, according to a Deloitte survey.
And using smartphones to bank online is becoming increasingly popular, with Deloitte research showing that 55% of adult Australians use a mobile banking app to transfer money.
Now we are even able to make payments using our phones and Deloitte found that 35% of the more than 2000 Australians surveyed, between the ages of 18 and 75, are prepared to use their mobiles as a payment device.
There's no denying that Commonwealth Bank is at the forefront of digital innovations and features that make mobile banking easier. This is the seventh year in a row Commonwealth Bank has picked up this award.
"Leveraging off the exponential growth in the use of smartphones and introduction of new technology like smart watches, Commonwealth Bank continues to pave the way for its competitors," says Julie Nguyen, research analyst at Canstar.
"Offering a comprehensive list of features across available platforms allows Commbank customers to experience a seamless transition from desktop to mobile."
Useful features on the Commbank app include the ability to place a temporary lock/hold on your credit/debit cards, withdraw money using cardless cash, pay someone using a mobile number, store loyalty cards in a digital wallet and make contactless payments in store.
Its photo-a-bill feature lets you take a shot of your bill and image capture technology scans it and then adds the details needed for you to tap and pay.
Commonwealth Bank will also introduce a spend tracker soon.
This shows you exactly what you spend your money on by automatically categorising your transactions into groups such as groceries, rent, fuel and more.
It is also working on a "savings jar" which will automatically round up your transactions and keep your spare change in a virtual savings jar, similar to the investing app Acorns.
Bank of Melbourne/BankSA/St.George, our second placegetter, offers a number of useful features that make banking easier.
You can place a temporary lock/hold on your credit/debit cards and use cardless cash, set up alerts for transactions that will incur a fee and use fingerprint verification.
The app also features an "expense splitter". If you're paying for group expenses such as concert tickets, presents or a holiday you can use expense splitter to keep track of what you're owed, send SMS reminders and record who has and hasn't paid you back.
Westpac, in third, offers cardless cash, a temporary lock and tap and pay on compatible Samsung devices.
So what does the future hold for mobile banking?
"In the next couple of years we expect an increase in strategies to assist individuals make more informed decisions to reach their financial goals," says Nguyen.
"Through analysis of consumer transactions and behaviour, institutions have the ability to assist in the avoidance of fees and promote better product choices to suit individual needs."
Others predict we will see more voice payments and even smart bots.
In the US, for example, Bank of America is launching "Erica", a virtual assistant that will use artificial intelligence to make suggestions over mobile phones for improving users' financial affairs. Customers can chat with Erica via voice or text message.
WHY THEY WON
Offering a comprehensive list of features across platforms, allowing customers to experience a seamless transition from desktop to mobile.
TOP FEATURES
Mobile app, cardless cash, ability to place a temporary lock/hold on your credit/debit cards and fingerprint verification.
RANKINGS
1. Commonwealth Bank
2. Bank of Melbourne/Bank SA/St. George
3. Westpac
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