Mobile phone and internet banking transactions now total almost £1bn a day, a study has suggested. The technology is used for transactions worth £6.4bn a week, up from £5.8bn last year, the study by the British Bankers’ Association and EY found. They did not reveal the proportion of transactions made on mobile phones, but said the amount had risen sharply.
The research found that, on average, 15,000 banking apps had been downloaded each day this year. In total, 14.7 million banking apps have now been downloaded, a 2.3 million rise since January. However, the report found many customers still preferred internet banking to mobile phones for large transactions.
"While customers like the ease of checking their balance with an app on their phone or tablet, they often use a PC to transfer larger amounts or apply for a mortgage," it said. And despite the popularity of internet and phone banking resulting in a sharp fall in day-to-day use of bank branches, the study said they remained important for "big moments" such as when customers took out mortgages, or wanted to assess their financial options.