ICICI bank customers get mobile banking facility

ICICI bank has started mobile banking services for its customers in a budge to take the frontiers of banking transactions beyond the ATM and internet, full-fledged banking transactions through mobile phone.

In the past few years customers have moved from branch banking to a host of non-branch channels like ATMs, call centre and internet banking.


Before, the customers used to get all information like balance in the account and mobile alerts through mobile phones. But now with the starting of mobile banking service customer will be able to replicate all transactions through mobile similar to an internet banking transaction.


In ICICI Bank around 55% of the transactions is done through ATMs, 22% through the internet, 12% through call centre and the remaining through branches. Previously, around five years ago, transactions through internet banking was very little about 2%.

Now with the new platform iMobile, all internet banking transactions can be done on mobile phones. Customers will be able to transfer funds to ICICI Bank and non-ICICI Bank accounts, pay their utility bills and insurance premium and do a host of other operations. The application include savings accounts, demat, credit card and loan accounts.

ICICI Bank ED V Vaidyanathan said, the new service will help to give more power to the customer. They will now be able to transact from practically anywhere. He is anticipating seeing the transactions of over 40% over a period of time with the use of new services.


The customers having mobile with GPRS and non-GPRS facility will be able to use the service. Customers will be required to enter four-digit PIN to enter the mobile banking application, which will prevent unauthorized use of the service.

At present there are about 13 million ICICI Bank customers, out of which, there are 2.5-million active customers. It is also having 7-million registered customers for SMS alerts. The bank currently sends around 20 million alerts a month.

Citi and HSBC banks are giving this service in other parts of the world. Some of these banks are planning to launch these services here. Till now, mobile banking services, which were provided by banks, have been SMS-enabled.

While, these were push-services like SMS alerts and balance enquiries. There has been security concern with the introduction of such services since the SMS route, through which the information travels, is totally unsecured.

Aditya Menon, Chief IT officer of Obopay India — a mobile payments solutions company — said there are many banks who have been working on a mobile-payment solution. Obopay is having talks with six other banks to provide a service that will enable bank customers to transfer funds to anyone who has a mobile phone and a bank account. Indeed, banks like Corporation Bank and Union Bank of India also have similar products in the pipeline.