Source: Firethorn
Mobile banking and payments enabler Firethorn Holdings, and Verizon Wireless, the leading wireless company with the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, announced today a new strategic relationship that will provide Verizon Wireless customers with the ability to easily interact with their financial institutions using Firethorn's mobile financial services application.
The relationship provides a unique opportunity for financial institutions assessing their mobile strategies. With Verizon Wireless' mobile banking offering, powered by Firethorn, customers will be able to access and manage their financial relationships while on-the-go for a seamless, real-time and secure user experience. In addition, Verizon Wireless and Firethorn will team with financial institution partners to conduct comprehensive marketing and consumer education programs aimed at aiding and encouraging adoption.
Verizon senior vice president of consumer products Jim Straight said, "After carefully researching the marketplace and surveying consumer preferences, we concluded Firethorn will provide a secure, easy-to-use and flexible mobile banking solution that will deliver a superior user experience for our customers. We expect these mobile banking services will be valuable to our customers, paving the way for us to introduce more comprehensive payment capabilities."
As financial institutions join the Firethorn Network that already includes Wachovia (NYSE: WB), SunTrust Bank (NYSE: STI), Regions Financial (NYSE: RF), BancorpSouth (NYSE: BXS), Synovus (NYSE: SNV) among others, Verizon Wireless customers will be able to access these relationships in a simple and secure fashion. Verizon Wireless plans to pre-load the Firethorn application on devices in the future. "Firethorn's larger vision is to provide consumers with a safe, secure and consistent access point to their financial information through their ever-present mobile device," explained
Firethorn chairman and chief executive officer Tripp Rackley. "Viewing balances, making transfers and paying bills is the first step. Bringing new and exciting functionality to the mobile handset, such as the ability to view and redeem loyalty points, reload gift cards and perform purchases at the point of sale, including contactless payments, is core to our mobile financial services strategy."
Rackley continued, "Today's announcement with Verizon Wireless is an important step toward broad adoption of mobile financial services - delivered through the Firethorn solution. Together with Verizon Wireless and our financial institution partners, we are helping to define the market for mobile financial services."