Money News
Internet banking in this country will soon be 10 years old as Nationwide - the first institution to provide such a service - celebrates the anniversary on May 27th.
Over the last decade, internet banking has developed into a sophisticated and immensely popular facility. New research conducted by the Society shows that 37% of adults now use internet banking.
In 1997 just over 13,000 customers registered for Nationwide's internet bank. But this figure has steadily increased to over 3 million people now, with growth set to continue.
Over half (53%) of internet bank users bank online because they believe it is convenient. 50% of users also say internet banking is easy to use, with a quarter giving speed as their reason for banking online. Meanwhile, 11% say they use internet banking because they can't always get to a branch, with just 4% saying they access internet banks because it reduces their paperwork.
As internet banking has developed across the industry, more and more people have decided to manage their finances online. Some 11% of customers have used internet banking for more than six years and a further 20% of people have been logging on for 4-6 years.
66% of internet bankers log on at least once a week, while 9% of men say they check their internet bank every day compared with 6% of women. 70% of all internet bank users manage at least half of their personal finances on the internet with 12% of internet bank users managing all of their banking needs via the facility.
Nearly all internet bankers (93%) manage their current account online with 66% managing their savings accounts online. 50% of users manage their credit cards online whilst less than a fifth of users access their personal loans (14%) and mortgages (17%) via internet banks.
Half of users (49%) log on to their internet banks to manage these accounts after 6pm in the evening with just under a third (31%) logging on during the day (8am - 6pm).
For those that don't use internet banking, 23% state it's because they prefer to deal with people face to face or over the telephone.
People also have different views on the safety of internet banking. Only a third (31%) of people who don't use internet banking think it's safe, whereas 86% of internet bank users believe it to be safe.
22 May 2007 © Moneyextra.com
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