Is Turmoil is Boosting E-Banking Usage?

Fiserv Inc. recently conducted a survey and found that economic turbulence is driving more consumers to bank online.

Seventy-one percent of respondents said they were watching their finances more closely than a year ago. Of those, 75% said they use online banking; 28% said they were using it more often than a year before; 44% said they were using it the same; and 3% said they were using it less. Use of other channels, such as automated teller machines, call centers, and branches, declined and use of mobile banking was essentially unchanged.

Sixty-three percent of survey respondents said banking online gives them a greater sense of control over their finances.

The October survey of 1,009 online U.S. adults was conducted by Forrester Research Inc. of Cambridge, Mass.

Todd Lesher, the president of the electronic banking services unit at Fiserv, of Brookfield, Wis., said in a press release Thursday, "This survey indicates that online banking is still a great opportunity for financial institutions looking to strengthen their ties with consumers." From American Banker article.