Barclays Bank has entered a strategic alliance with Vodafone UK to develop mobile Internet banking, stockbroking and Barclaycard account management services.
Initial services will be delivered using WAP-enabled mobile phones and are scheduled to be available to customers by the end of the year. The handsets will link to a newly-designed mobile Internet portal, which will provide the gateway to Barclays online banking, share-dealing through Barclays Stockbrokers and Barclaycard account services, as well as access to services such as news, entertainment, sport and travel information. Barclays customers will also be offered preferential pre-pay and post-pay service packages through Vodafone.
Vodafone and Barclays say they will work together to enhance these services through new mobile developments as they become available, such as high-speed connections via GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) and Third Generation (3G) technology.
Ian Richardson, e-director, retail financial services, Barclays, comments: “As mobile phone technology becomes increasingly sophisticated, we believe that more and more people will take advantage of being able to access their banking using their mobile phone."