Third of Europeans use mobile banking – ING survey

More than a third of European Internet users are already using mobile banking services, according to a survey from ING which also reveals cash is proving stubbornly popular among shoppers.
Of nearly 12,000 people from 12 European countries quizzed by the Dutch bank, 37% use mobile banking. Turkey leads the way on 49%, ahead of Spain and the Netherlands on 44%, while Romania is bottom of the league on 23% behind France on 25%.

Around two thirds of all respondents – and more than three quarters of Brits – who use mobile banking say they feel more in control of their money. More than half of m-bankers think that they pay their bills on time more often and are overdrawn less.

Among those that do not use mobile banking, 37% say that they do not have a smartphone or tablet, 33% worry about security and 11% say that it offers them nothing they cannot get through other channels.

Meanwhile, ING found significant resistance to contactless payments, with 45% of respondents not confident that their money would be secure if they used the technology. The French are particularly concerned by wave and pay, with two thirds worried about it, compared to just a quarter of Dutch respondents.

A third also „expect banks to make it possible to do payments through social media”, with Romania and Turkey the most enthusiastic nations and 18 to 24 year olds the keenest age group.

However, while the survey reveals a willingness to embrace new ways of paying, cash is still popular. Half say that they prefer to use cash when shopping to help them see when they are spending too much. This actually rises to 64% for more technologically savvy under 25s.