Phone-based banking: Dial 'M' for money

Dial M for money

Mobile banking is the wave of the future and leading the way are forward-thinking Gen-Y consumers.

There are almost 80 million smartphone subscribers in the United States. Banking applications make up 37% of all applications purchased for the Apple iPhone, Google Android and RIM Blackberry. And according to a study conducted by FIS Mobile Financial Solutions, about three out of four banking users are happy with their experience this year, a 16% gain from 2010. "We are seeing mobile deployments by banks accelerating in 2011, with our clients growing mobile users by 35% monthly," said Douglas Brown, senior vice president of FIS. "The momentum is driven by unprecedented consumer demand." The ease of mobile banking, a result of improvements in smartphone technology and the ease and availability of mobile banking apps, are fueling the growth. Using NFC, or near-field communication, networks, a user could simply tap a phone at a checkout lane instead of swiping a banking card. For every early adopter, however, there is someone unwilling to sink money into uncharted waters. Of the 4,000 survey respondents, 38% answered that they preferred to access online banking accounts through a personal computer, with 28% citing security concerns as a reason for not using their phones instead. Another hurdle towards the universal acceptance of mobile banking: awareness. Over half of respondents did not know that their banks offer mobile servicing; although 57% expressed willingness to use them they were unaware that they had access to a remote deposit application with their bank. Almost 20% think small screen size is a barrier. Further improvements in security and technology may mean that we will soon be saying “mobile” at the checkout counter.

LMAX clients get the hookup

Seems everyone is getting into the mobile app market these days. LMAX Limited, based in London, is both a multilateral trading facility and a broker that provides 'on exchange' trading for contracts for difference (CFDs) and rolling spot foreign exchange (FX) contracts. They have just rolled out LMAX Trader for iPhone and BlackBerry, which encourages clients to stay updated with the markets and in charge of their LMAX account status while they are on-the-go. LMAX brings together retail FX and CFD investors with institutional buyers and sellers in a variety of financial instruments. Its traders can now access their portfolios through a screen interface for a new kind of “mobile dealing,” which allows LMAX clients to manage their positions and orders across multiple asset classes. The application is free for download directly to smartphones from BlackBerry App World and Apple's App Store. It will be available for other mobile operating systems within months. To get connected, visit LMAX online. Related stories: WealthCentral Mobile now available for Android Retirement? There's an app for that (Retire Logix for iPhone from Finance Logix) Fidelity rolls out iPhone app for WealthCentral Leveraging the iPad (J.P. Morgan Funds app for wholesalers The Hartford's annuity wholesalers lighten up with iPads Advisers viewing videos in new ways (use of QR codes & readers)

Edgar Online cuts to the chase with notes analysis, receives patent

A patent awarded to Edgar Online Inc. the XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language) software, services, and data provider, allows its new program to categorize and cross-reference notes within financial documents and present the information in a navigable format. The patent, entitled “System and Method for Rendering Data,” was awarded just last week and covers the semantic analysis of notes to financial statements and, using computer-readable XBRL, associates them to related items in a primary financial statement. The system is for use with the Edgar Online I-Metrix product suite, which provides business-language tags and company information to over 12,000 Securities and Exchange Commission-affiliated companies. It allows analysts and investors to smooth the workflow of locating and evaluating detailed financial information for benchmarking and research purposes. The patent is an addition to Edgar Online's “Method for Adding Metadata to Data” and “System and Method for Rendering of Financial Data.” Like the company's other offerings, it is delivered through a partner network that includes LexisNexis, Nasdaq OMX, Oracle, and PR Newswire. For more information please visit Edgar Online Inc. Related stories: Infrastructure initiative could help managed accounts Managed-account standards attract converts; SEC completes taxonomies Yahoo launches center for currency investors Research agreement reached on XBRL XBRL still a foreign language for advisers SEC's big IDEA — put EDGAR out to pasture and modernize InvestmentNews technology reporter Davis Janowski provided additional reporting for this story.)