Smart mobile banking: why Swedish banks need to adapt and adopt

In the past three years Swedish consumers have purchased two million smartphones - primarily iPhones and models running the Android operating system. Penetration now stands at 25%, a level previously unseen in the Nordic countries. As a result, smart technologies and the smartphones that deliver them are becoming the most intimate channel for communicating with Swedish consumers.

Mobile financial services offer a huge opportunity for large Swedish banks. They offer banks the chance to gain and retain new clients among the younger generation which has shown itself reluctant to adopt a traditional relationship with them. Mobile financial services can support the banks’ ambitions to re-position themselves as modern, interactive, financial institutions with services tailored to the needs of individual customers. These services in particular target emerging lifestyles centred around social media generally and smartphone use in particular.

However, PA believes the established Swedish banks must act swiftly to grasp the opportunity. Niche banks with more flexible IT infrastructures are already moving to offer mobile financial services and, according to recent figures, Sweden’s top four banks, continue to lose market share to these smaller, more nimble competitors. The banks also face competition from new non-banking competitors entering the market with new financial services applications and mobile payment capabilities.

For more information on PA’s smart services, including mobile banking, or to learn more about how PA is working with financial institutions around the world contact us now.