There are approximately 30 million internet and mobile banking accounts in Thailand, a figure likely to dramatically increase in the near future after the government launches its national e-payments system, Prompt Pay.
Increases in smartphone ownership coupled with more advanced mobile payment technologies is altering the way business is done around the globe, and is making it crucial for mobile payment providers to not only track, but also adapt to what's trending within mobile and digital technology. Here are three particular digital trends set to transform mobile financial services in 2017:
Virtual currencies
Since 2008, Bitcoin's emergence has been influenced by a wide variety of factors that have made it one of the most volatile currencies in the world.
Despite its instability, more than 100,000 Bitcoin transactions are taking place every day and the amount only continues to grow, largely due to Bitcoin's transformative, peer-to-peer block chain technology which stores information in computers around the world, and is constantly updated in real-time to reflect changes in stocks, sales and accounts.
Where Bitcoin is likely to have the biggest impact going forward is in the global remittances market.
Today, remittances are playing an increasingly important role in the economies of developing countries, supporting families and communities in some of the poorest parts of the world, and are even nearly on a par with the amount given in global financial aid. In fact, the World Bank estimated remittances to developing countries alone grew 6.3% in 2015 to US$414 billion, and will reach $540 billion by the end of 2016.
However, large amounts of current remittance transfers are lost to high charges by corporate intermediaries, with an average of 7.60% of the amount sent, while the transfer process itself can take up to 5-6 days. These high fees and delays are pushing migrant workers to look for alternative ways to send money to their home countries.
As Bitcoin transactions can be verified, settled and signed off by the network for free within an hour, they make for an ideal solution. This virtual money can then be converted back into conventional currency at a competitive exchange rate for withdrawal by recipients through either their mobile phones or a bank account. Indeed, it looks like the Bitcoin paradigm shift in money transfers is ready to greatly increase its influence on the global mobile finance sector.
Wearable technology
Just as mobile payments are becoming accepted practice among consumers, now manufacturers are seeking to transform this process even more by enabling shoppers to pay with wearable technology. In recent years, technology companies have been piloting and launching a wide range of innovative solutions that utilise multiple types of near field communication-enabled form factors, including rings, fobs and stickers, in addition to wristbands and smartwatches, as vehicles for mobile payments.
At the same time, a handful of banks have chosen to participate in wearable tech trials, while others are already tweaking their mobile banking apps for smartwatches. While this is currently considered a relatively niche market, the wearables global domain still exceeded $2 billion in 2015 and is expected to reach a staggering $34 billion by 2020, especially as the industry works through its current issues, such as the installation of NFC-capable payment terminals, the available selection of NFC-enabled wearables, as well as increasing consumer comfort with wearable solutions.
While some industry experts expect smartphones to always dominate the mobile payments process, some industry players believe that by 2020 wearables will overtake smartphones as the payment vehicle of choice.
Biometrics
With more and more people initialising digital transactions across more mobile channels than ever before, the value of customer verification has significantly increased as regulators try to ensure mobile transactions are as secure and transparent as possible.
However, the challenge is making the process as simple as possible for potential customers.
In 2017, that solution lies in biometrics, automated methods of recognising customers through their biological characteristics and traits, such as iris/voice recognition, fingerprints and finger vein patterns which are unique for every person and extremely difficult to counterfeit.
Utilising biometrics for "Know Your Customers" management in banking and financial services enables customers to verify their identity quickly and accurately, providing an easier and more efficient user experience, while at the same time reducing security risks.
In fact, the Biometrics Research Group projects that the implementation of new biometric technologies in the banking industry has the potential to cut financial institutions' operational risks by at least 20% over the next 10 years as more financial institutions consider how best to incorporate biometrics into their operations.
As 2017 unfolds, virtual currency (block chain technology), wearable tech and biometrics are all innovative trends set to influence the world of mobile financial services, trends that signify the evolution within the mobile financial service industry from a focus on functionality to one that seeks to place the needs and expectations of the customer front and centre.
Maya Barkay is senior expert in Amdocs' Mobile Financial Services marketing team.