UK banking app transaction numbers soar
Brits are increasingly relying on banking applications to manage their money, with nearly 40% of adults using apps in 2016 and transactions rising by 57% during the year.
Customer use of banking apps has soared by 356% between 2012 and 2017, with the number of transactions rising as customers begin to do more than simply check their account balances.
Last year there was a 30% rise in the number of Brits using apps to manage their savings, a 46% increase in those looking after their credit cards and an 86% jump in those handling mortgage and investment accounts.
Nearly two thirds now use apps to transfer money, six in 10 paying other individuals and just under a quarter arranging standing orders.
Meanwhile, banks sent out over 434 million text alerts to customers in 2016, an 18% increase on the previous year, and there were 4.4 million webchats, up 24% on 2015.
Away from the mobile phones, there was also a 225% increase in contactless card spending during 2016 as one out of every four card payments used this technology.
Eric Leenders, MD, retail and commercial banking, BBA, says: “Customers’ appetite for using technology to manage their money on the move is showing no signs of abating, with banking apps now the principle means by which we access our current accounts.
“And this doesn’t appear to be a fad with more and more people moving beyond payments, increasingly using apps to access a broader range of banking services, such as savings, credit cards, mortgage and investment accounts.”
A report released by industry analyst CACI yesterday forecast a steep decline in the number of banks branch visits over the next five years as banks build out their apps and steer more consumers to the mobile channel.
