The ACNielson.consult survey -- which questioned 1,514 Australian Internet users during the fourth quarter of 2002 -- found that 86 percent had used Internet banking at some point. This was behind South Korea at 90 percent but above Singapore, which had a penetration of 80 percent.
However, the vast majority of e-banking applications used by Australians are one-way functions such as checking the balance of debit or credit accounts, reviewing the status of loans and viewing online statements.
The survey found that 96 percent of people who had used Internet banking had checked the account balance, 64 percent had viewed or downloaded online statements, 63 percent had checked the balance on a credit card and 36 percent had reviewed the status of their mortgage or personal loan. Eighty eight percent of ebanking users had transferred funds and 77 percent had used Bpay.
Only 13 percent of ebanking users had applied for a credit card online, and only eight percent had opened a savings, cheque or transaction account. However, ebanking users are keen to conduct other transactions online, according to the survey.
At the top of the wish list of ebankers is the ability to pay utility bills with their credit card online, with 80 percent saying they would use that capacity. The replacement of paper bills also garnered interest, with 53 percent of ebankers saying they would like to be e-mailed an electronic statement instead of a paper one, and 47 percent indicating they would appreciate e-mail or SMS alerts such as 'hit credit line' or 'payment due'.
There is also a desire for greater interoperability between the ebanking networks of different banks, with 35 percent of people indicating they'd like to be able to get a credit card cash advance and wire the money to anyone's account, even in another bank.
Of the 14 percent of Internet users who had not used Internet banking 35 percent indicated they were likely to in the next 12 months. The biggest hindrance to them taking up Internet banking is concern over the security of transactions, with 76 percent of non-ebanking Internet users citing this as a reason for having not used ebanking. Although, 53 percent admitted that another significant factor was that they just hadn't gotten around to it.
The big four banks had the highest usage of ebanking, with the Commonwealth Bank achieving 47 percent usage, followed by ANZ (34 percent) Westpac (24 percent) and the National Australia Bank (23 percent).
Very simple answer why Australia has the highest uptake of e-banking. Because the banks in Australia FORCE US to use i-banking for face being slugged with fees and charges.
Simple really !!