Can CUs Capitalize on Smart Device Money Movement?

Over 1 million internal transfers occurred in July 2019, making up 67% of all money movement; 77% transfers came via smartphone devices; and since 2014 mobile usage increased 270%.

The Austin, Texas-based Malauzai Software, a Finastra company and digital banking provider for community financial institutions, released its July 2019 Monkey Insights “little-data” report, the report where an overwhelming amount of big data surrounding digital banking is broken up into digestible analytic factoids called “little data.” This report focused on money movement, such as person to person (P2P) payments, account to account (A2A) payments, and internal transfers, with a specific focus on how consumers choose to send money to their friends and family.

The research, which highlighted key trends in internet and mobile banking usage based on July 2019 information for 400-plus credit unions and banks, covered 16.5 million logins from over one million active Internet and mobile banking users.

“Fast and on-the-go seems to describe consumer preferences for P2P payments” the report communicated. The average value transferred decreased from $443.11 in 2014 to an average of $322.01 in July of 2019. The transactions may be smaller, but more people are using P2P. July marked a 270% increase in mobile usage since the same month in 2014. Mobile dominated across all forms of personal money movement which accounted for 73% of all transactions (including internal transfers, P2P or Member to Member payments and A2A transfers).

Apple continued to be the mobile platform of choice, as P2P payments made on iPhones outranked those made through Android devices by 44%. The Apple iPhone, as does Android devices, continued to blow past browser usage. This indicated the biggest preference for P2P might be for third-party or financial institution-provided apps that simplify the transfer of funds on the go.

Over one million internal transfers occurred in July 2019, making up 67% of all money movement. Mobile dominated as 77% of all internal transfers came via smart phone. The report noted most financial institutions readily allow internal transfers without additional fees, making it easy for consumers to move funds as needed. “These numbers may be a signal to community financial intuitions. This could indicate that that consumers would readily jump at community bank or credit union provided solutions that allow them to simply and efficiently manage their money,” the Monkey Insights report indicated.

Two years ago, the Monkey Insights reported a rising trend in A2A transfers. July didn’t disappoint in that respect, as 2.35% of active digital users digitally transferred funds between accounts at different financial institutions. For the sake of comparison, only 1.15% of active digital users initiated P2P payments in June. “Thanks to the rollout of open banking in the UK, this is an issue that’s getting a lot of traction. Given consumer sentiment, it’s also a service that all financial institutions will need to offer sooner rather than later to avoid being edged out by new market entrants.”

Allan Brown, Vice President, Digital Community Markets for Malauzai, a Finastra company, said, “What we are seeing, is a natural progression of the payments functionality. Originally, we thought people would use person to person functionality to split checks or to pay someone back for a beer. Five years ago, we were seeing people adopt P2P for larger money transfers, like rent. Just two years ago Monkey Insights August 2017 reported the average P2P to be at $450 while Venmo was just $25. As the market continues to become more comfortable with these new payment methods, more users are adopting them in their everyday financial transactions, not just the large or ‘one-offs.’”

Brown added, Payment providers like Venmo and Cash App are becoming colloquial terms, like Google. However, he suggested, they do not offer the same protections and education that a bank or credit union can provide. “Why shouldn’t a community financial institution, your go-to financial provider, not be your first choice in making a payment? This data shows the beginning of that power shift.”