Mobile banking has been at the threshold of a revolution for some time. While
many operators, as well as banks, have introduced mobile banking applications it
never became popular due to security concerns.
UK-based Barclays is one of the largest corporate money managers in the
world. The bank launched its consumer banking services in India last year. And,
recently, the bank launched its mobile banking service available on GSM
handsets, on Airtel, Vodafone, and Idea networks in forty cities. Customers can
choose between Hindi and English. Further, Barclays aims to include more
languages and extend it to CDMA handsets as well.
Shridhar Guru, director, IT, Barclays Global Retail and Commercial Banking
spoke to VOICE&DATA about Barclays' mobile banking and other technology
initiatives. Excerpts
What are some technology initiatives undertaken at Barclays?
Our technology initiatives are focused on fulfilling our promise of offering
convenient and secure banking services to our customers. Delivery of efficient
banking services to people requires efficiency in operations and cost within the
system. And, technology has started playing an instrumental role in achieving
the same to support rapid and accurate decision making with greater operational
flexibility and efficiency. For instance, the technology used to develop
Barclays' Hello Money not only offers convenient and secure mobile banking to
masses, but is highly cost effective as well, both for the bank and customers.
We are also working on other initiatives that will aid consumer's lifestyle and
take banking services beyond the conventional model.
In India, lifestyle and consumer behavior range between two extremes of the
spectrum. Thus, customising and aligning technology to develop offerings, which
are relevant and provide convenience and accessibility to customers in a secure
environment is the key challenge.
You recently launched your mobile banking application. What key
differentiators will keep you ahead in the space?
Barclays' Hello Money is based on the unstructured supplementary service
data (USSD) platform, which inherently has higher levels of security as compared
to other existing platforms. USSD is independent of SMS, GPRS, and WAP. Also,
there is no risk to customer's personal information unlike SMS or GPRS, as the
service doesn't store any data or session on the handset. The real time
operations ensure that the data is not stored in the memory of the handset or on
the network except secure Barclays Bank servers. In fact, it is the only mobile
banking solution in India to operate on the USSD technology platform.
How does it work? Suppose I am a customer, how do I do the transaction?
Barclays customers can perform account enquiries and financial transactions
by dialing *598*1#. Banking transactions like fund transfer, bill payment,
request, and other banking services can be carried out without visiting a branch
or ATM. Upon dialing *598*1#, customers will be guided to a mobile-based menu
where they will be able to choose from a number of options and, upon entering
the Hello Money PIN, they can perform their required transaction on their
handsets.
 |
Shridhar Guru
director, IT, Barclays Global Retail and Commercial Banking |
The biggest hurdle in the success of mobile banking is security. How is Hello
Money different in this regard?
We have laid special emphasis on security as we deal with people's money and
their aspirations. Starting from the handset to the completion of the entire
transaction, secure encryptions and global standards of data security have been
followed. The most important aspect is that the banking session does not get
stored on the handset. USSD ensures that no data is stored anywhere in the
operators systems. End-to-end security through IP Sec ensures encryption from
the gateway to the bank's gateway and hard security module at the operator's
end. Standard encryptions are already in place for over-the-air transmissions as
per 3GPP specifications of GSM.
Besides this, the custody of the data is completely with the bank and is kept
in demilitarized zones.The funds transfer limit and Visa money transfer (VMT)
limits are within stipulated RBI guidelines. The sessions are real-time. There
is no human interface involved. The process is completely automated and is
conducted only on highly secure banking connections and servers.
Moreover, the service can only be accessed only if the PIN number, which is
unique and known to the customer only, and the mobile number match. Therefore
there is no threat even if the cell phone is misplaced.
What are the drawbacks of USSD?
There are two limitations inherent in applications that leverage USSD.
Firstly, the screen of a typical mobile phone can accommodate only 160
characters and secondly, the mobile phone service providers impose a time
restraint on a single session, ranging from 3 to 10 minutes. We have been able
to address the above issues by designing the application user interface in a
manner that the number of characters doesn't become a limitation. We have also
ensured that multiple sets of customer transactions can be executed within the
allowed time limit.
Does Barclays Global also use the USSD technology?
Barclays' Hello Money is a first of its kind initiative across the Barclays
group. And our experience from the success of Hello Money is currently being
shared with our colleagues in other countries to explore the possibility of
using this technology in their respective regions.
What do you think is the future of mobile banking in the country?
Mobile banking as a service is still to catch up in large parts of the
world. Even the developed countries, where mobile banking has gained momentum,
are still exploring opportunities to exploit this space and develop new ways of
usage. India is no different. It is among the fastest growing markets in the
world. Though, basic services like bill payments, recharges, and money transfers
have picked up in some markets. In developed countries, m-commerce has started
gaining popularity due to higher level of comfort with emerging technologies.
Also, increasing penetration of mobile phones in countries across the world has
fuelled expectations. Thus, mobile banking is the service of the future and
m-commerce is inevitable.
Gagandeep Kaur
gagandeepk@cybermedia.co.in
Page(s) 1
Print
Comment
Email
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
