Rise of Digital Banking

We are becoming a nation of digital bankers, with nearly 5.5 million Britons now banking online. This represents a 6-month increase of 37.5% over the 4 million transacting personal accounts on the net in April 2001. Such are the major findings of a new Egg/MORI survey released this week.

There also appears to be a strong link between experience and comfort in using the net for more sophisticated and transactional purposes. The survey found that 56% of net users that have been online for over 5 years also bank online, but among those who have been online for between 1 and 3 years, the figure dips to 20%. At the same time, only 11% of those who have been net users for up to a year bank online. Clearly the market for online financial services has growth potential.

In terms of the uptake of online financial products, the findings show that 46% of Internet users have now either bought or serviced a financial product over the Internet, compared to 34% in August this year. The three most popular financial products to be arranged over the Internet in order are insurance, credit cards and savings accounts.

In detail, motor tops purchasing within insurance with some two million having taken out an online car insurance policy to date. Since launching the first ever online credit card in 1999, Egg has led the market and now boasts a card base in excess of 1.2 million customers. Looking forward, 53% of net users say they would consider arranging some sort of financial product over the Internet in the next two years.

The report has also identified a high level of interest and anticipation in new technologies not yet widely available on the market. In all, 36% of British adults view with interest the possibility of being able to access and view all their financial products, regardless of being with different providers, on a single net site, (otherwise known as 'account aggregation'). Overall, 37% of adults say they would be interested in using a single website which enables them to choose and compare between financial products from a range of suppliers.

Commenting on the main findings, Mark Nancarrow, chief operating officer of Egg, said 'Britain's appetite continues to grow for new and exciting innovations that are either already on the market or on the technological horizon. Consumers have developed a liking for the value and flexibility that digital technology affords them, and are becoming increasingly confident in the possibilities of transacting online. We are now also seeing a significant level of interest and anticipation for technologies such as digital payment and aggregation services, which are currently not widely available in Britain.'

MORI conducted the research through 1,959 interviews with adults aged 16+ across Great Britain. All interviews were conducted face-to-face, in-home between 18 and 24 October 2001.

All articles 2006-22 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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