Social media may not exactly be taking the button-down world of retail banking by storm, at least not around the world.

Ovum, part of London-based Datamonitor, said its research found that 6% of retail banks internationally use social media to deal with customer queries and only 1% more plan to add that function this year or next.

The study found that 14% currently use social media for marketing, with another 12% planning to do so by the end of 2012.

Fully 60% said they have no plans to use social media in any way.

"The banks without a social media strategy are being shortsighted and are placing themselves in a dangerous and vulnerable position compared to competitors who have realized that social media can and must play an intrinsic role in their business," said Ovum analyst Martha Bennett.

She cited three U.S. banks-Citi, Bank of America and Wells Fargo-for their use of the channel, adding that they and the U.K.'s First Direct and Rabobank in the Netherlands "are still feeling their way and their strategy is very much a work in progress."

Bennett also added, "Consumers are not averse to receiving promotional messages via social media or using it for customer service inquiries, so a massive opportunity to rebuild the confidence in the sector that is so desperately needed is being ignored."

Ovum said it conducts more than 400,000 interviews a year with business and technology, telecom and sourcing decision makers. The full report-"The Impact of Social CRM on Retail Banking"-costs $2,995.