The next move for mobile financial services

mdocs has recently released the results from a new global survey around mobile financial services (MFS) which revealed that more than 68 percent of the respondents have yet to use mobile financial services, and that new innovative solutions for savings, loans, and insurance will drive the next phase of mobile financial services growth across emerging and mature markets.

Conducted by analyst and consultancy firm Ovum on behalf of Amdocs, the survey focused on both users and non-users of MFS worldwide. 8,500 consumers were surveyed in 17 countries across emerging and mature markets including UK, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, US, Canada, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, South Africa, Ghana and the Philippines.

“Consumers who have adopted MFS

Aappreciate the benefits these services can bring. The ubiquity and convenience – the ability to use MFS anytime, anywhere – was the overwhelming benefit cited by survey respondents in both emerging and mature markets. These are immediate, tangible benefits and a powerful riposte to those who say there is no value in MFS,” said Eden Zoller, principal analyst at Ovum. “This represents positive progress but MFS providers can’t afford to be complacent as the research clearly shows that there are fundamental issues and challenges that still need to be addressed, ranging from security concerns and ease of use, to lack of awareness.”

Key findings of the research include: The lack of market awareness and misperceptions about mobile financial services are still key concerns – The majority of the survey respondents either does not use mobile payments or financial services applications, or are unaware of them. 31 percent of respondents in emerging markets said that they were unaware of mobile payments or financial services. 34 percent of respondents in emerging markets said that they were aware but had no plans to use the services, compared to 30 percent of respondents in mature markets.

Savings, loans, insurance and payment solutions for medical treatment and education services will drive the next level of growth in mobile financial services. 25 percent of respondents in emerging markets said they’re likely to adopt advanced MFS products likesavings, loans, and insurance in the next year, compared to 16 percent in mature markets. In some mature markets such as the UK and Sweden, the likelihood was much higher, ranging from 17 to 30 percent. Emerging markets (22 percent) are more likely to adopt MFS for making payments for medical treatment and education services than the mature markets (15 percent).