Mobile devices continue to develop, with new hardware, operating systems and software coming regularly to market amidst a wave of publicity and fanfare – just look at the speculation surrounding the next iPhone, when it will be launched and what it will offer. With each new iteration of technology comes the ability to carry out a wider set of transactional services when it comes to mobile banking, payments and commerce.

Although we are seeing wider adoption of EMV as a driver for NFC payments, for example in the US, we are still missing is a universal set of standards that enable interoperability for all the different types of mobile financial services - but as options are developed and the market determines its preferred services these will emerge, initially in the domestic sphere before applying to cross-border international payments.   

Given the level of unpredictability that currently prevails, the most successful schemes will be those that take advantage of existing payments processing infrastructure, particularly where the real-time capabilities that mobile demands have been deployed. Mobile will rightly be a trigger for organizations to implement a more flexible payment platform that enables them to adapt to changing conditions with agility. But where these platforms are already in place, businesses can overcome the challenges and focus on the opportunities presented by mobile banking, mobile payments and mobile commerce.