Mobile Finance Popular in Emerging Markets

Mobile banking and payments services are popular in several African countries53 per cent of mobile internet users in India, Kenya, Indonesia, Ghana and Nigeria have engaged in mobile banking and payment activities. This is especially high in Kenya, where 96 per cent of mobile Internet users have engaged in a financial activity via their mobile.
This is one of the key findings of a study looking at the mobile finance activities of mobile internet users in emerging markets, conducted by On Device Research, which uses the mobile internet to access consumer opinions.

The report also found that using mobile for financial activities is also popular in rural areas, with almost equal penetration compared to urban usage in some countries. The report also identified sending airtime credits as the most popular mobile finance activity, with 28 per cent transferring credit. Airtime can be used as a form of currency to pay for goods and services. 

“The high levels of mobile finance interaction we found in the research demonstrates that there are fantastic mCommerce opportunities for local entrepreneurs and western companies looking to move into emerging markets,” says On Device Research CEO, Alistair Hill.

The report is the third in On Device’s ‘Post PC Era’ series of reports. You can download the report here.