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AT&T Launches Mobile Banking Nationwide
The USA based AT&T has launched a mobile banking service in cooperation with a series of banks - Wachovia & SunTrust Banks - along with mobile banking and payment enabler Firethorn Holdings. The mobile banking application will be pre-loaded on future AT&T handsets beginning later this year. Because the mobile solution is embedded on the handsets, it is easy for users to locate the mobile banking icon in the applications folder on the device and access the service. The mobile banking application is also available for download on more than 30 of AT&T's most popular handsets - representing approximately 30 million devices in the market today.
"The ability to perform banking functions using a wireless handset is attractive for people who need to make financial decisions on the go — business travelers, college students and anyone who desires the flexibility that wireless delivers," said Mark Collins, vice president, Consumer Data, for AT&T's wireless unit. "Value-added services such as mobile banking and payments to the mobile device are part of our ongoing strategy to enrich the customer experience."
AT&T customers pay no additional fee to access mobile banking and, because the application resides on the handset, the service is optimized to reduce the number of new page views necessary to complete a transaction. Minimal data usage charges apply and vary based on individual use.
According to Celent, a research and consulting firm focused on the application of information technology in the global financial services industry, approximately 46 million households currently bank online. By 2010, 17 million households will use mobile banking for similar functions.
"This is the year that mobile banking is moving into the mainstream," said Red Gillen, senior analyst, Celent. "We expect consumer adoption rates to mirror those of online banking and for mobile banking functionality to expand as consumers become increasingly comfortable with this entirely new banking channel."
BancorpSouth was the first bank in the United States to go live with mobile banking on AT&T handsets earlier this year. Adoption rates have been higher than expected and have resulted in a 15 percent traffic increase to the bank's Web site. Wachovia expects similar acceptance as it continues to position itself at the forefront of the mobile banking industry.
"From our experience as the first major U.S. bank to offer a mobile banking solution - Wachovia Mobile - the demand for mobile capabilities is clear; people want to bank when and where it is convenient for them," said Ilieva Ageenko, director of Emerging Applications, Wachovia. "AT&T takes mobile financial solutions to the next level by extending the capabilities to a much broader base and provides Wachovia customers with an innovative new method of ubiquitous access to their financial information."
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