MACAW is often asked about our opinions on online banking, mobile banking, mobile payments and digital wallets. Some people even use this industry jargon interchangeably to much confusion. So we always ask what people mean by these terms, and if they don’t know what to answer, we ask more specific questions. More often than not, people struggle to define what they are actually asking about. Maybe not so strange given the complexity of current day payments, so why not clean up the terminology a bit to reflect how the world is changing?
For example, is accessing your online banking facility through a mobile web browser defined as mobile or online banking (or both?). What if you substitute a mobile with another device such as an iPad? Is the term mobile payments reserved for non-bank payments conducted via mobile; what about remote vs. proximity payments; or whether or not the transaction involves a card account? See – it quickly gets complicated. Hence there is a need to define a common industry terminology, and that’s our goal. Let's begin with online banking and mobile banking.
The term online banking certainly made sense when it was introduced, and the browser on the computer was the only mode of access to the internet banking facility. But you can also access the online banking facility with a web browser on a mobile or other device. Is that mobile banking? Not in our book. A browser is a channel or mode of access irrespective of device. Redefining online banking as 'browser banking' is historically and technically accurate. Why retain an old world term when we can use the more precise term ‘browser banking’ which leaves less confusion?
Similarly we suggest replacing or supplementing the term mobile banking, which two device specific channels, SMS and Apps, are no longer reserved for mobile phones. These modes of access are available via other devices such as an iPad. Thus MACAW would suggest a channel-based rather than device-oriented terminology. We can substitute the term mobile banking with ‘SMS banking’ and ‘App banking’ to help clear up the confusion.
So let's abandon online and mobile banking in favor of browser, SMS and App-based banking. A channel/access mode approach removes some confusion and is device neutral.
