Banking on Mobile Phones in India
If you are living in India and have a mobile phone which is most likely you do, there is a news for you. Your mobile phone may soon become an all-purpose banking gateway, enabling you to transfer funds, pay bills and buy movie and air tickets.It’s not like you did not have access to mobile banking before but it was limited to checking account balances and ordering cheque books, isn’t it? Now, see it’s little more advanced and transfer the money in minutes through mobile banking.
Operational costs of banks will come down dramatically
You are among those 300 million mobile phone subscribers in India and Bankers see it’s a huge opportunity for mobile banking as there are so many mobile subscribers with 400 million account holders in India. A banking transaction in a branch costs anything between Rs35 and Rs40 and at an automated teller machine (ATM), between Rs15 and Rs30, depending on the location. In contrast, a mobile phone transaction, would cost about Rs2-5. It is said to be the cheapest alternative source of banking, cheaper than an internet banking transaction that costs Rs10-15.
Yes Bank ties up with Obopay Inc. to offer money transfer
Last week, US-based payments and remittance service provider Obopay Inc. announced its tie-up with private sector lender Yes Bank Ltd to offer money transfer facilities to the bank’s customers. Using the facility, Yes Bank customers can send money from mobile to mobile instantly by sending an SMS. They can transfer up to Rs25,000 by using the text messaging facility. The money goes directly to a bank account and the recipient can withdraw the cash immediately by using a debit card.
Standard Chartered Bank and Barclays have launched the intiatives
Foreign banks such as Standard Chartered Bank and Barclays have also launched mobile banking initiatives in the recent past. Services such as “card less cash withdrawal” allows Standard Chartered’s customers to transfer cash instantly to anybody anywhere in India. Similarly, Barclays’ “hello money” offers the British bank’s customers a number of options that include transferring funds and paying bills.
What about the safety of mobile transactions?
The safety of mobile payment transactions is addressed through two personal identification numbers (PIN), key to such mobile phone transactions. Both the bank as well as the customer who is sending money will send a PIN each to the receiver of the fund who can withdraw the cash from any ATM after punching in the two PINs.
It looks lucrative initiative at this moment as it will not only save time for the consumers but also bring down the costs of operation for banks which is good for economy as well provided this is been securely implemented.
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