Should banks and credit unions be charging fees for use of mobile banking? Many institutions are considering their options to bring in more revenue from their service offerings. Mobile banking has been discussed as a possible option to increase revenue. In our latest survey we asked customers how likely they would be to leave their financial institution, if it began charging for mobile banking services. We found that although a majority (55%) was likely to stay with their bank or credit union, a considerable number (45%) said they would be likely to leave their current institution.
We allowed the respondent to answer on a 0-10 scale, ranging from “Not at all Likely” to leave, to “Extremely Likely” to suspend patronage. As the above illustration shows, 29% of respondents said there was no real chance they would leave their bank under these circumstances. However, nearly 20% said they absolutely would.
Many of the electronic banking services currently being offered are done so free of charge to the bank consumer. However, several national and regional banks have begun testing the waters with fees on certain mobile bank services like remote-deposit-capture, leaving others to ponder whether or not they are leaving money on the table. The question then becomes: Does the risk outweigh the reward? With results like those above, it would appear that financial institutions should definitely proceed with caution when thinking about charging for mobile banking access.
