Expand your mobile banking services. Strengthen your
brand. Broaden your customer base. Differentiate your bank from the
competition. And, even more important, create new revenue opportunities.
These are among the potential benefits of the e-wallet, a
much-anticipated smartphone packed with a multitude of banking and
payments solutions. Unfortunately, despite the efforts of such major
players as Google, Sprint, Paypal and Isis, the e-wallet has remained
elusive in the U.S. market ... until now.
FIS, one of the world’s largest providers of banking
and payments technology, has entered the e-wallet sweepstakes with its
new mobile wallet, a cloud-based payment solution that can be built into
any financial institution’s existing mobile banking applications, thus
enhancing brand and customer loyalty.
“FIS Mobile Wallet is unique in its ability to
support existing smartphones and existing point-of-sale hardware, while
still being forward-compatible with new technology as it becomes
available,” said Doug Brown, FIS senior vice president of mobile
financial solutions. “This enables financial institutions to launch a
mobile wallet today, and to attract and retain customers via their own
financial institution-branded mobile payment solutions.”
Success of the e-wallet — and digital banking in
general — ultimately hinges on merchant and consumer adoption. Retailers
must see the benefits of mobile payments, which FIS understands. Its
mobile wallet has the ability to promote advertising, couponing and
companion offers to consumers, thus enhancing the ability to generate
sales. Currently, it uses quick response, or QR, codes to execute
transactions. Payments are processed via a software connection through a
secure cloud server and, therefore, do not require terminal updates by
retailers.
E-wallet security is another major issue for
consumers, merchants and financial institutions. A recent study by
security company Symantec, for example, discovered that the majority of
people who found a lost smartphone attempted to access financial and
other information, rather than try to return the phone to its owner.
Brown points out, however, that the FIS Mobile Wallet is uniquely secure
because no payment credentials, such as credit card numbers, are stored
on the smartphone. Even more impressive, the customer’s private
information is not even provided to the POS device, thus ensuring total
security on the bank and the merchant sides of a transaction and
eliminating PCI compliance burdens for merchants.
“As the mobile wallet replaces the traditional
wallet,” said Brown, “there is the potential for a profound change in
consumer behavior, as well as the way financial institutions and
merchants engage their customers. The anytime, anywhere nature of mobile
and online represent an unparalleled level of convenience that
consumers will continue to embrace.”
This is putting more pressure on banks. In fact,
Brown believes banks must provide the channels consumers want for
accessing and managing their financial information. He recommends four
best practices to strengthen banks’ position in the digital world:
- Work with your financial services technology provider to discuss your business needs and digital/mobile strategy.
- Leverage your mobile solution integrated into your core and e-banking solutions.
- Think beyond traditional mobile and online banking. These are table stakes. Have a plan for remote deposit capture, mobile payments and digital money movement.
- Encourage employees to be enrolled and active in your mobile and online channels.
Younger
generations that have grown up with this mobile technology expect their
financial providers to offer these services, stores in which they shop
to handle their e-wallet transactions and their e-wallets to be
completely secure.