The number of mobile banking transactions in the UK doubled between 2012 and 2013, according to figures released today by the British Banking Association (BBA) in its debut Way We Bank Now study, the first in a series of publications highlighting how Britain is embracing technology.

The study, which covers the UK’s five biggest retail banks’ – Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Santander – customers, reveals that these customers are now making more than 5.7m transactions a day using smartphones and other internet-enabled devices.

Other key findings from the study include:

• Customers have downloaded more than 12.4m bank apps
• They used their mobile phones for 18.6m transactions a week in 2013, compared to 9.1m in 2012
• When desktop PC transactions are added into the mix, the figure rises to almost 40m transactions a week in 2013
• They signed up to receive more than 457.7m SMS balance alerts and other text messages during 2013.

“A revolution is underway in how people spend, move and manage their money,” said BBA chief executive, Anthony Browne. “This is not just about the phenomenal growth of mobile banking, which has already allowed millions of British customers to make billions of transactions from the palm of their hand. Consumers are also rushing to use contactless cards, text alerts and a range of other easy-to-use technology. This is innovation that connects us more strongly to our banks than ever before and gives us greater freedom to handle our money wherever and whenever we please.
• “The branch will remain integral to banking services in the 21st century – especially for those big moments in life such as arranging a mortgage. But the day-to-day use of branches is falling and part of that is because there is a groundswell of people who now find that banking on the move is fast, easy and convenient.”