More than one billion mobile phone users are expected to have used their devices for banking purposes by 2017's end, which compares to less than 600 million in 2013, forecasts Juniper Research in a new report published Wednesday.
The one billion estimate represents more than 15% of the global mobile subscriber base, of which many of whom are unbanked, and therefore have limited access to traditional financial services, said the U.K.-based firm.
The new research also predicts that the developed markets of the Far East and China, North America and Western Europe will have the highest penetration of users in four years.
To date, the firm finds that most banks have at least one mobile banking offering (messaging, mobile browser or app-based service), while many larger banks are deploying several of these mobile methods.
"While messaging remains highly popular and relevant in the financial sector, apps will be the dominant access mode in developed markets with banks reporting an increased number of visits per month on their mobile apps," said the report's author Nitin Bhas in a press release.
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