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Mobile Banking (also known as M-Banking, m-banking, SMS Banking, etc.) is a term used for performing balance checks, account transactions, payments, etc., via a mobile device such as a mobile phone. It was Internet Banking, which ushered in a new era in banking convenience
by bringing the entire operations to the computer, and now mobile banking promises to take it to the next level.

Internet Banking helped give the customers anytime access to their banks. Customers could check out their account details, perform transactions like transferring money to other accounts, and pay their bills, sitting in the comfort of their homes and offices. However, the biggest limitation of Internet Banking is the requirement of a PC with an Internet connection, not a big obstacle if we look at the US and the European countries, but definitely a big barrier if we consider most of the developing countries of Asia like India and China.

Mobile Banking addresses this fundamental limitation of Internet Banking, as it reduces the customer requirement to just a mobile phone. Mobile usage has seen an explosive growth in most of the Asian economies like India, China and Korea. The main reason that Mobile Banking scores over Internet Banking is that it enables 'Anywhere Anytime Banking'.

According to Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the mobile subscribers' base in India hit 40.6 Million in August 2004, and it will be almost 80 Million in 2008, i.e., nearly double. We all expect 2009 set to be a big year for Mobile Banking. After a slow start at the turn of the millennium, it would seem this time around, that the devices, the networks, and the users have finally started using "Mobile Banking". The majority of the Indian banks, whether nationalized bank or privatized, are already involved in offering mobile services to their customers. Several banks have even tied-up with mobile phone operators and service providers to carry out transactions on mobile phones. While some banks allow simple account-related queries on mobile phones, some have gone a step further and stored the debit and credit cards on mobile phones as well to enable various transactions.

Four banks - SBI, HDFC, ICICI and Corporation Bank - have partnered with India's largest operator - Bharti Airtel - to offer m-banking. RCOM has tied up with ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank and IDBI Bank. Bharti Airtel has launched its mobile banking and plans to rope in about 100 major banks in India by end 2008.

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* Contributed by: -
Prof. Pooja S. Kushwaha is a Science Graduate, has 2-Years Advance Diploma in IT from Regional Engineering College, Jaipur, cleared 'O' Level from DOEACC, M.C.M, M.C.A. Presently working as Faculty - Information Systems at ICFAI Business School, Indore. She has presented various research papers in different conferences & seminars, and also published the same in national journals.
Article posted on October 26, 2008.