Mobile banking numbers inching up, ABA survey finds

Representing a modest bump, nearly 40 percent of U.S. adults now use a mobile device to manage their bank account at least once per month, according to a survey commissioned by the American Bankers Association.

When contacted by a public affairs firm in July, 39 percent of respondents reported that they had used a mobile device to access and manage their bank account in the past month, according to the report. The same survey conducted last year found that 38 percent of adults used their mobile device for banking services at least once in the past month.

“It’s no surprise that mobile banking has become more popular given banks’ increased investment in this technology,” Nessa Feddis, an executive for the association, said in a statement. “Mobile banking is another way that institutions are making it more convenient for their customers to manage their accounts anytime and anywhere.”

By contrast, however, 42 percent of respondents said they own a mobile device, but have never used it for banking purposes. The survey included 1,000 participating adults and is part of an annual appraisal done by the association.

For the most part, the survey numbers align with findings from a Federal Reserve report released in March, which indicated that 52 percent of smartphone owners with a bank account had used mobile banking in the previous 12 months. The report said that 87 percent of the U.S. population now has a mobile phone with 71 percent of that total owning Internet-enabled smartphones.

At Intrust Bank, division director Tom Morrison said 39 percent of the institution’s consumers actively used its mobile banking service in July, up 10 percent from the same month in 2014. Intrust regards an active mobile user as someone who logs in at least monthly, Morrison said.

“Mobile banking has been very well received,” Morrison said. “Mobile banking is catching on much faster than online banking, including online bill pay, did. It’s been only three years since we implemented mobile and to already have tens of thousands of users, that’s great. Part of it speaks to how society has taken to technology.”

The Federal Reserve report indicated that 51 percent of identified mobile banking users had deposited a check using their phone in the 12 months leading up to the survey.

This story was originally published September 4, 2015 at 11:00 AM with the headline "Mobile banking numbers inching up, ABA survey finds."