Tablets to overtake mobiles for online banking by 2016 - Forrester

Tablets are set to overtake mobile phones as the handset of choice for banking access by 2016, according to research from Forrester.

While mobile banking use in Europe will grow fast - from 42 million users in 2013 to 99 million in 2018 - tablet banking will grow twice as fast - from 19 million users in 2013 to 115 million in 2018, says the analyst house.

Growing tablet ownership, the increased availability of tablet banking apps, and fewer security fears among users are the key drivers behind the explosive growth predicted by the report.

Forrester analyst Stephen Walker, comments: "We expect the number of Western European online banking users on PCs and tablets to grow slowly in the next five years and reach 163 million by 2018, masking a big underlying shift from PCs to tablets to access banks' websites."

Forrester expects the proportion of European tablet owners who bank on the devices to almost double from 35% in 2013 to 68% by 2018. In 2018, Sweden will have the highest tablet banking adoption at 89%, while Italy will have the lowest at 54%.

Channels

Retail banking

Keywords

Mobile & online banking

Comments: (4)

A Finextra member 20 May, 2014, 21:42

Be the first to give this comment the thumbs up

0 likes

Since you can skype and Facetime through a tablet and a laptop this research seems only to indicate that people want to do stuff on a slightly bigger screen but not too big. Wow! What is the exact definitional breakpoint between a mobile and a tablet, as my iPhone is 12.5x6cm and my iPad is 24.5x19cm? Is it 18.75x12.5cm? Can we deduce that by 2016 >50% of people will be using a device >18.75x12.5cm and <50% will use <18.75x12.5cm? And in Sweden by 2018 it will be 89% >18.75x12.5cm but in Italy 46% <18.75x12.5cm? The earth really has moved here on the basis of that intelligence. What is the definitional breakpoint between a wireless laptop PC and a tablet? My wirless laptop is 38x26cm so issszzzzz....

Report abuse

A Finextra member 21 May, 2014, 08:37

0 likes

The distinction between mobile devices and tablets is very blurred. This is made harder with phablets for example. I think this kind of research is meaningless, the fact is, you have to support tablets, mobiles and desktop with your app and web offerings. It's that simple, oh and you need to support the big platforms, iOS, Windows, Android, MacOS...

Report abuse

A Finextra member 21 May, 2014, 09:58

0 likes

What this story doesn't tell us is what percentage of banking functions will have been displaced by mobile payment apps. Even if the penetration and adoption of tablet based mobile banking is high, by then, will mobile banking be contending with disruptive mobile and app based solutions and MNO offerings including payments charged to phone bills?

Report abuse

Matt Jones - Payments Culture - London 27 May, 2014, 10:27

0 likes

Does it matter if banking done via a tablet or smart phone. I believe many people have both devices and bank on both dependent on what is in hand at the moment. When on the move smart phones are probably used a lot more at the moment as less people have 3/4G in their tablets as standard, but perhaps this will change in the future.