​Security most important to retaining mobile banking customers

Security, service quality and system quality form the pillars of any successful business, but a joint NTU-WeBank study found that these are the three most important factors for mobile banking as well. In a radio interview, Assoc Prof Xu Hong, from NTU’s SSS, who led the study, said: “It’s been well known that mobile banking users look out for factors such as security and service quality. But there was a gap in research about the exact weightage each of them plays – and that’s what drove us to carry out this study.”

The NTU-WeBank team also found that the users considered security assurance as the most important factor in user experience of mobile banking, and followed by service quality and system quality, then followed by interface design and loyalty intention. “The findings are important in determining customer loyalty would be useful to banks who are looking at improving their mobile banking apps. Already widely used in China prior to COVID-19, they have seen a sharp rise in uptake throughout Asia during the pandemic, as the touchless payment systems provided by most mobile banking applications have gained traction. Our study is also pertinent to other banks who are increasingly rolling out more digital solutions, which include payment, lending, and wealth management applications,” Assoc Prof Xu added.