The FINANCIAL — Internet transactions have reached a record number (1,347,005), valued at GEL 41,502,000 as of the end of June 2014, compared to last year’s statistics of 795,032, worth GEL 28,156,000.
Mobile phone top-up and bill payments lead the list of the most popular transactions among online and mobile banking users in Georgia. The average age of the users of e-banking is 35. Males prove to be more prone to use e-banking than females.
The total volume of online banking transactions at TBC Bank amounted to GEL 418 million as of July 2014. The volume of mobile bank transactions was GEL 70 million during the same period of the current year.
31% of the customers of TBC Bank use its internet banking. Mobile banking makes up 11%.
49% of mobile and internet banking users of TBC Bank are females, 51% are males. The average age of internet banking users is 35 years. The average age of female mobile banking users is slightly less; their average is 31 years old.
The number of transactions made via internet banking at TBC Bank was 2,700,700 during the first half of 2014. Mobile internet transactions reached 626,800.
The top five transactions made via internet and mobile banking at TBC Bank comprise: mobile phone top-up, bill payments, transfers to one’s own accounts, transfers within TBC Bank and conversion/external transfers.
In 2013, Global Finance awarded TBC Bank with two global sub-category awards in Consumer Internet Banking: The Best Integrated Internet Bank Site in the world and The Best Bill Payment & Presentment in the world.
During the first half of 2014 the number of transactions increased more than 4 times at another leading Georgian bank, Liberty Bank. Internet and mobile banking transactions reached 189,166 during the first half of 2014, up from 44,392 in the prior-year period.
The number of active users of mobile banking at Liberty Bank is 1,009. The number of active users of online banking is twice more, totalling 2,471.
The number of transactions made via online banking was 175,558 as of June 2014. Mobile banking transactions totalled 13,608 during the same period.
The number of transactions made during the first half of 2013 was 44,392, worth GEL 5,086,649.547. With 56%, bill payments leads the list of the top transactions. It is followed by internal transfers, which make up 26%, external transfers – 6%, withdrawal of funds from savings – 3.75%, and top-up savings – 3.65%.
Males dominate among the online banking users of VTB Bank Georgia. They make up 55% whilst females make up the remaining 45%.
The average age of female users at VTB Bank Georgia is 31 and of males – 36.
Mobile top-up, making up 37%, is the leading transaction made by customers. It is followed by bill payments – 32%, transfers to local banks – 18%, transfers within the bank – 8%, and conversions – 5%.
As well as questioning commercial banks, The FINANCIAL ran its own private survey to better understand online consumer and mobile banking behaviour. For this purpose, over 400 respondents were questioned from the age group of 30-45.
According to the results of the survey, an overwhelming majority (85 percent) of Georgians said that they log in for online banking at least two-three times per week. The survey found that only 45% has a mobile application for their bank. 90% of mobile app owners still prefer to do transactions from their PCs.
When using their bank’s mobile app, consumers most commonly charge their mobile balance, transfer funds between accounts and pay bills.
Bill payments, mobile top-up and money transfers were the most commonly-made transactions by online banking users.
The ubiquity of the internet was the main factor that contributed to changing the way that consumers access their financial services.
Mobile and online banking are becoming more widely used, but visits to bank branches are still common. The survey found that 84 percent of respondents have visited a bank branch within the past six months. Most commonly, Georgians make a trip to the bank to make a deposit, withdraw funds and speak with a banking associate. However, just 15 percent of respondents say that they complete the majority of their banking transactions at a branch.
The whole 100% of online and mobile banking users have stated that they are currently making twice as many transactions as they did a year ago.
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