Study: US Consumers Likely to Use Bank-Offered Mobile Wallets

A recent study conducted by management consulting company CCG Catalyst has found that more than half of US consumers will likely use bank-offered mobile wallet if their bank will have one.

The study, “The Age of Mobile Wallets: What Banks Need to Know When Considering the Creation of a Bank Branded Mobile Wallet,” looked closely at wallet usage among consumers to help banks identify opportunities, realize customer needs and decide whether to offer mobile wallets.

The study was issued to a panel of 25 million US consumers and generated 2,000 completed surveys.

Respondents answered a series of questions divided in three key themes: habits, behavior and usage, measuring consumer attitudes towards mobile wallets versus non-bank mobile wallets.

The study found that 51 percent of the respondents will likely use a bank-offered mobile wallet.

PayPal mobile emerged as the most popular mobile wallet used by consumers who participated in the survey with 45 percent.

While more than 82 percent own a smartphone, 12 percent of them had no plans of using any kind of wallet just yet.

The survey also found that more than 66 percent of participants monitor their spending and paying bills, while more than 47 percent check their bank accounts status daily.

More than 58 percent occasionally use their mobile banking app to bank, the study noted.

When asked about the main challenge to using mobile wallet, fear of identity theft came first followed by merchant acceptability.

Paul Schaus, CEO and president of CCG Catalyst, commented, “The results of the survey offer insights to the current state of mobile wallet adoption, and this will help banks make vital decisions surrounding their own adoption of mobile wallets. Clearly there is a growing interest among customers to using bank-offered mobile wallets, and we want banks to recognize and fulfill those unmet customer needs.”