The number of adults in Europe who use mobile banking has risen to 18 per cent from 13 per cent a year ago, according to a report from Forrester Research.
The company surveyed a sample of 14,000 European internet users, and found that 13 per cent receive text alerts from their bank, while 7 per cent access mobile banking websites.
Forrester says that, while mobile banking is still far from mainstream, consumer adoption of smartphones and increasing use of the mobile web will drive further sustained growth of casual, informational use of mobile banking. The company found that 73 per cent of mobile bankers already check their account balances, and 43 per cent look up recent transactions.
However, the question remains as to the ROI that banks can achieve from facilitating mobile banking. Forrester says that a “robust” mobile banking solution from a bank will see an average ROI of 15.7 per cent. Says Forrester analyst Brad Strothkamp: “This relatively small ROI does not mean mobile banking initiatives should be scrapped. Far from it: customers and prospects – especially the younger set of Gen Xers, Gen Yers, and teen Millennials – will demand it.” 
Banks abilty to address consumer concerns over security and cost are the key challenges banks face, according to the report.
You can read Strothkamps blog post on the subject here.
