Cellphone banking at the bottom of the pyramid

Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2012.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis investigate the di erent available GSM bearer channels that can be used to launch a cellphone banking application. Speci c attention is given to launch such a cellphone banking application to the so called \bottom of the pyramid". In South Africa, there are an estimate 11 to 13 million people with no bank accounts. The cellphone create an ideal opportunity to be used as a tool to reach this untapped market segment that today mainly uses cash to pay for day to day living expenses. The thesis provide more information on the cellphone banking arena in South Africa as well as certain projects in other parts of the world. The thesis also highlight new devel- opments on cellphone technology that include Android and IPhone delivery channels. Focus is placed on how the cellphone banking presentation layer must be delivered through the USSD GSM bearer channel. USSD is at the current moment the ultimate channel to consider due to its extensive reach and ability to work on any GSM cellphone handset. In conclusion, although cellphone banking can be used by any person, the bene t to bring nancial services to the bottom end of the pyramid must be considered to achieve nancial inclusion. The cellphone due to its reach is the ideal medium to access this lower end market.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis ondersoek beskikbare GSM selfoon kanale wat gebruik kan word om 'n selfoon bankdienste toepassing te initieer. Spesi eke aandag word gegee om so 'n selfoon bankdienste toepassing uit te rol na die sogenaamde onderste gedeelte van die bevolkings piramiede. Die tesis verskaf meer informasie oor die selfoon bankdienste arena in Suid Africa maar dit brei ook ooit oor sekere soortgelyke projekte in ander dele van die wereld. Die tesis lig ook nuwe ontwikkelings uit in selfoon tegnologie wat Android en IPhone mediums insluit. Fokus word geplaas op die selfoon bankdienste vertoning deur die USSD GSM kanaal. USSD is huidiglik die beste kanaal om te oorweeg as gevolg van die wydverspreide beskik- baarheid omdat die tegnologie op enige selfoon handstuk werk. Die uiteindelike gevolgtrekking uit die werkstuk is dat selfoon bankdienste deur enige persoon gebruik kan word, maar selfoon bankdienste is 'n goeie idee om te oorweeg om mense in te sluit uit die onderste gedeelte van die bevolkings piramiede. Die selfoon kan dus as 'n ideale medium gebruik word om hierdie mense te betrek by nansiele dienste

Usability Enhancement of SMS Interface for Illiterate Users

This article analyzes several User Interface (UI) designs and puts forward some more general design principles for interfaces designed for low-literate users. The results of this study highlight the importance of text-free interfaces compared to text-based interfaces for the illiterate and low-literate population. The study developed a Short Message Service (SMS) interface consisting of many design elements, including graphical icons, voice, and text reduction. The participants were more satisfied with the designed SMS interface as compared to the traditional text-based interface of SMS. We believe that if the user interface is appropriately designed, users will not need formal literacy, computer skills, or any external help to operate the application. It has been shown that an interface with minimal or no text but one or more graphics, audio, and digital components is helpful for users with low literacy rates

Usability design of Short Message Service (SMS) mobile phone banking

The financial services sector is investing considerable sums of money into mobile banking services, but the uptake by customers has been low. The cost to benefit ratio of mobile banking is highly unsatisfactory when the costs of developing and managing the channel are considered. Many of the advantages of Internet banking are shared by mobile banking e.g. control and time saving. Mobile banking also offers higher convenience with the ability to carry out banking whenever and wherever you are. It is hoped that mobile banking can be as successful as Internet banking. A major factor in the low adoption of mobile banking is usability, and there is a need for research on the issues surrounding mobile banking as so far little has been conducted. This thesis seeks to investigate the usability issues surrounding Short Message Service (SMS) banking. It identifies three general functions of SMS in electronic banking: transactions, communication/CRM and security. Three empirical usability evaluations are presented that explored customers’ perceptions and attitudes of using these functions of SMS banking. The research presented here provides empirical evidence for the thesis that usability is a significant factor in the low customer adoption of SMS banking. It also shows that related to usability issues are customer concerns over the security of SMS as a banking channel. Older users will find SMS banking less usable than younger users and are more ambivalent regarding SMS in general. It recommends the most usable message input format to use in SMS banking and contributes insights on how best to realise the practical application of SMS banking and services. The findings from these studies will help improve usability in mobile banking services

USSD: The Third Universal App

In this paper we argue for the use of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) as a platform for universal cell phone applications. We examine over a decade of ICT4D research, analyzing how USSD can extend and complement current uses of IVR and SMS for data collection, messaging, information access, social networking and complex user initiated transactions. Based on these findings we identify situations when a mobile based project should consider using USSD with increasingly common third party gateways over other mediums. This analysis also motivates the design and implementation of an open source library for rapid development of USSD applications. Finally, we explore three USSD use cases, demonstrating how USSD opens up a design space not available with IVR or SMS

Identifying the best practice in traditional and electronic banking operations strategies in developing economies. (The case of Jordan). Balancing resources with customer expectations in rapidly developing business environment.

The aim of this study is to identify the best practices in traditional and electronic banking operations strategy in Jordan as a case study of developing economies over the period 1999 to 2008. During this period numerous changes faced banks in Jordan: new banking law was launched, the banks were directed towards complying with the Basel Accord II, and the banks adopted more e-banking channels. Only the practices of all local banks were investigated due to their superior performance. A number of questionnaires were used to collect the data from different individuals in these banks. Further, annual reports were analysed and websites were reviewed. Two data-analysis approaches were used to identify the key strategies of traditional and electronic banking in Jordan: competitive position analysis and cluster analysis. Analysis revealed eight best practices of traditional banking and four best practices of electronic banking were adopted. Best practices are presented as prediction models. These models combine actions with capabilities and performance. The traditional banking predication models are: branches urban accessibility, branches sites accessibility (percentage of sites covered), branches sites accessibility (number of branches sites covered), account transaction time, new credit product flexibility, account customer waiting time, account transaction cost, loan approval costs, and branches layout quality. The e-banking prediction models are: Internet banking transaction time, telephone banking volume flexibility, ATM suburban accessibility, and ATM sites accessibility. This research revealed that; financial performance achieved by e-banking strategy patterns is significantly lower than traditional banking. Also customers satisfaction, retention, and deposit market of e-banking are significantly lower than traditional banking, which indicates that the best operational practices in Jordan are still more traditional oriented despite the significant direction of banks in Jordan toward adopting e-banking channel

Adoption and sustained use of M-Commerce to improve efficacy of construction SMMEs

E-commerce has been said to bring value to businesses by improving business efficiency and effectiveness and thus providing business with a competitive advantage through the potential benefits that it offers (Cloete, Courtney & Fintz, 2002). However, despite the potential benefits that e-commerce can offer, the adoption of B2C e-commerce in South African construction SMMEs is low and this is due to the challenges associated with e-commerce (Vaithanathan, 2010; Uzoka, Shemi & Seleka, 2007; Love & Irani, 2004; Anumba & Ruikar, 2002). These e-commerce challenges include: high implementation costs, lack or poor infrastructure, inadequate resources, low use of e-commerce by suppliers and consumers, lack of access to e-commerce, computer illiteracy, deficiency in understanding the potential benefits of e-commerce and security concerns (Vaithanathan, 2010; Uzoka, Shemi, & Seleka, 2007; Mensah, Bahta, & Mhlanga, 2005; Cloete, Courtney, & Fintz, 2002). Therefore, due to these e-commerce challenges, construction SMMEs do not exploit the business advantages that e-commerce offers. In order to assist South African construction SMMEs in their efforts to improve their business effectiveness and efficiency through commercial technologies

Assessment of e-banking strategies in the banking sector in developing economies. Using gap analysis to develop e-service strategies in the banking context, a case study in Jordan.

Strategic planners in retail banks are increasingly challenged to improve productivity, ensure high service quality and reduce operations costs while implementing their e-service strategy. This work aims to assess the current e-service operations strategy in the bank sector in Jordan and develop a framework for formulating e-banking strategies using gap analysis. Limitation of resources is hindering the shift from the current situation of the bank sector to a point where both the customer and the bank perspectives are fully matched and the gap between them is zero. If the available resources of the bank sector are utilised properly, the bank sector can move to a position near to that point which is closer to the customer requirements than the current situation. This can be achieved by constructing a model for an e-bank, the ¿Composite bank¿, which represents the industry best practice. Its performance captures the capabilities, resources and competences of the bank sector. A representative sample of the bank¿s customers was interviewed to fulfil a fully structured questionnaire based on the extant literature. Targeted managers in the bank 3 sector were then interviewed and completed a fully structured questionnaire based on the customer questionnaire. Both questionnaires were pre-tested to assure validity and reliability. The data analysis method was based on gap-analysis technique. The gap model provides a tool to identify critical elements for successful implementation of operations strategy and suggests actions to deal with them. The gap analysis approach was proved to be useful in other settings, such as measuring service quality, but there is paucity of applications in e-service operations strategies. An assessment tool and ¿working sheet¿ were delivered to pave the way for the strategic planners to assess the current situation of the e-banking strategy and to focus on the attributes/services which need more development. This procedure can be generalised to be applied in other industries (in service or e-service contexts), and other countries, both developed and developing

Banking the unbanked using prepaid platforms and mobile telephones in the United States

The rapid growth of mobile phone usage and the continuous rise in wireless coverage fuel the expectations that access to financial services trough mobile phones could transform the way financial services are provided. The emergence of new and more efficient business models, can potentially resolve supply inefficiencies that explain the large unbanked population that exists in the USA, much larger than in most developed countries. Nearly 40 million US households (approximately 73 million people) are financially underserved (CFSI, 2007), of which 15 million households (approximately 28 million people) are totally unbanked. This problem is explained by the non adequacy of the value proposals offered by financial institutions to the demands of the US customers. The areas of poor alignment refer mostly to the design of products and the marketing and distribution networks used. To resolve these misalignments, this paper will argue that business models based on prepaid cards as products and mobile phones as transactional and distribution channels could be used in order to close the supply gap. We will call the business model proposed based on prepaid products and mobile phones mobile banking, since these two elements are the basis of the business model used companies such as Smart Money and G-Cash in the Phillipines, Wizzit in South Africa and M-Pesa in Kenya.prepaid platform; unbanked; financial services; mobile phones; prepaid cards;

From Understanding Telephone Scams to Implementing Authenticated Caller ID Transmission

abstract: The telephone network is used by almost every person in the modern world. With the rise of Internet access to the PSTN, the telephone network today is rife with telephone spam and scams. Spam calls are significant annoyances for telephone users, unlike email spam, spam calls demand immediate attention. They are not only significant annoyances but also result in significant financial losses in the economy. According to complaint data from the FTC, complaints on illegal calls have made record numbers in recent years. Americans lose billions to fraud due to malicious telephone communication, despite various efforts to subdue telephone spam, scam, and robocalls. In this dissertation, a study of what causes the users to fall victim to telephone scams is presented, and it demonstrates that impersonation is at the heart of the problem. Most solutions today primarily rely on gathering offending caller IDs, however, they do not work effectively when the caller ID has been spoofed. Due to a lack of authentication in the PSTN caller ID transmission scheme, fraudsters can manipulate the caller ID to impersonate a trusted entity and further a variety of scams. To provide a solution to this fundamental problem, a novel architecture and method to authenticate the transmission of the caller ID is proposed. The solution enables the possibility of a security indicator which can provide an early warning to help users stay vigilant against telephone impersonation scams, as well as provide a foundation for existing and future defenses to stop unwanted telephone communication based on the caller ID information.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Computer Science 201