BPI, Globe push mobile banking

MANILA, Philippines - Clearly, the act of banking is not quite as we remember it anymore — and has been that way for a while.

Before being ubiquitous and indispensable testaments to progress, automated teller machines or ATMs were wondrous newfangled gizmos that gave us the ability to bank without actually going into a bank. Now, the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), one of the country’s leading banks, is continuing the evolution of banking via the BPI Mobile Express app.

Since its launch in 2009, the application that opens a new platform via mobile banking has been the most downloaded finance app in the country, says BPI in a release.

“BPI has always been at the forefront of introducing new channels for our clients to access their accounts conveniently,” adds SVP Manuel Tagaza, electronic channels group head.

Meanwhile, BPI mobile banking head Frederick Faustino tells The STAR in an exclusive interview that the change in the banking landscape has been reflective of technological strides in general. “The behavior of clients has changed. Now, with the app, it’s like having BPI right in your pocket,” he says.

The BPI Mobile Express app (downloadable from the iTunes App Store, Google Play, and BlackBerry App World) enables banking transactions such as bills payment, money transfer to other BPI clients, and reloading of Globe prepaid phones via smartphones and tablets that are piggybacked on the aforementioned platforms. BPI Express online and phone brand manager Patrick Joseph Zulueta insists that this is in line with the bank’s drive toward more efficient banking for its customers.

Faustino, meanwhile, reports a spike in enrollment and usage. “In 2009, when we launched the application, we had about 60,000 users. Today, we have close to 400,000 unique users, and we are very proud to say that we are the local bank with the most number of downloads and usage of a finance app,” he says, adding that BPI is the first local bank to offer its app on most platforms, and to specifically develop for tablets in a bid to “maximize the real estate available to clients.”

There’s a natural concern for data security of course, so BPI employs a number of measures to ensure this — above the end-to-end testing and risk assessment across all touch points. First, the user ID and password are never stored on the application and are asked for each time a transaction is desired. The daily limit is also capped at P50,000, while transfer to designated accounts must be enrolled and confirmed via ATM activation. And like BPI’s Internet Banking platform, inactivity after five minutes gets you kicked out of the system.

“Some people may be wary of using the cellphone because it seems less secure, but most of the people I know who use mobile phones put passwords before you even access the installed apps,” says BPI VP Armando Navarrete, who heads the channel management and channel services division. “That’s actually another layer of protection right there.”

As an additional marketing push, BPI partners with fellow Ayala Group firm Globe Telecom to offer free access to the application for Globe’s over 38 million prepaid, postpaid, and TM customers. Until Aug. 31, data charges will be waived for Globe users logging on and transacting using the BPI Express Mobile app.

“They can access bank accounts and transact whenever and wherever they are,” says Cleo Celeste Santos, Globe VP for national and consumer sales, and consumer business.

The application is even more relevant now that “smartphone users are growing in number because of a lot of affordable handsets that can access mobile data.” She adds that BPI and Globe share a common objective in seeking to increase the number of mobile data users in the country.

Globe, Santos continues, is setting a tenor of aggression in terms of its offerings: “We are aggressive in putting content in all our services because part of our thrust is to provide our customers with a wonderful experience.”

Concurs BPI VP Carlo Gatuslao, division head for channels management in the electronic channels group: “We are happy with the number, but the potential remains big. When we launched our native app in the second half of last year, the take-up was tremendous. This promo will hopefully show exactly how big the market is out there.”

For more information, visit bpiexpressonline.com.