The new m-banking service is expected to launch across the US by the third quarter and will be offered through a partnership with telco AT&T.

Citi credit cardholders signed up to the service will be able to view current balances, available credit limits, recent transaction histories and rewards information on their mobile phone.

Commenting on the new service, Raja Rajamannar, executive vice president, Citi Cards, says: "As customer utilisation within mobile payments continues to evolve and grow, we are well positioned to be among the first to offer this valuable service for our cardmembers."

Citi has invested heavily in mobile banking and has embarked on a number of initiatives including the establishment of a joint venture with South Korea's SK Telecom last month which will focus on developing an advanced mobile banking platform for service delivery over the Internet as well as via handsets.

The bank also launched a mobile banking application for US customers last year that enables users to view balances, see account activity, pay bills, transfer funds, find a branch or ATM and connect to customer service staff.

Citi has also teamed with California-based start-up Obopay to launch a pilot person-to-person mobile payment service for its credit and debit card customers.

In another move, last month the bank made an equity investment in Silicon Valley-based contactless payments outfit Vivotech.

Wireless firm Mobicom also recently filed with the US Federal Communications Commission for a Citibank-branded mobile handset, as reported on the Finextra Communities blog network yesterday.