More Kiwis banking on their smartphone

More and more Kiwis are using apps on their smartphones as opposed to internet banking to manage their money.

This shift is being described as one of the biggest and fastest in the banking sector when it comes to consumer behaviour, and it’s set to continue.

Google research suggests New Zealand is ranked 17th in the world for the amount of smartphones owned and it’s estimated that 65 percent of Kiwis have a smartphone.

ASB is one bank that has noticed this shift. ASB introduced its mobile banking app in 2012 and it took less than a year for customers to use the app more than internet banking.

Fiona Colgan, general manger digital, ASB says the gap has widened further. “The number of active customers using ASB’s mobile app has increased by more than 40 percent over the past year,” she says. “Customer uptake and usage of our app is growing weekly and with 90 percent of New Zealanders estimated to be on smartphones by 2018, growth in this area shows no signs of abating.”

The app has already handled 25 million transactions since it was released and has grown at four times the rate of FastNet Classic internet banking, says Colgan.

Initially, when internet banking was introduced, customers were nervous about security, Colgan says. Apps such as ASB Mobile have security measures in place such as Netcode to ensure customers have peace of mind.

Colgan says customers today live on the go, and mobile banking is the easiest choice, with simple and quick means to check their balance and keep up with bill payments.