The phone overtook the computer. How do we use banking?

”Mobile Portrait of a Pole” is a study commissioned by the Public Relations Department of Bank Millennium, which provides detailed and up-to-date data on phone use, electronic banking, attitude to artificial intelligence, online shopping and financial security.

As many as 75 per cent of Poles surveyed indicated that they use the bank's mobile application on their phone. For people aged 18-24, the application is the basic tool for accessing their accounts - it is used by over 90 per cent of the youngest group of respondents. Logging into the account on a computer is less popular with them (36% of respondents admit to it). As the age of the respondents goes up, these proportions reverse - respondents over 55 years of age use online banking more often (79 per cent declare so) than mobile applications (63 per cent).

How often do the surveyed Poles use online banking? Almost 40 per cent of them log in to the banking application at least several times a week, every third respondent does it every day or almost every day, and every fifth - several times a month. Survey participants declare that they use banking in web browser less often - the largest group - as many as 32% of respondents - do it a maximum of several times a month.

“The banking app, as research shows, is one of the most important on the phone. It has long ceased to be just a tool for checking the account balance or making a transfer. Now we invest money in it, take loans, buy insurance, deal with official matters, and even set up companies. At Bank Millennium, we attach great importance to customer experience, which is why we create the application together with users - we read their opinions, carry out surveys and tests with them. Our intention is to make mobile banking convenient and intuitive for everyone, regardless of their age, whether they are active users or just taking their first steps in the app. For years, we have been consistently implementing the "mobile-first" approach, which puts mobile banking at the centre of our activities. At the same time, we understand that some of our customers, largely older, feel more confident in front of a computer screen, which is why we continue to provide them with access to Millenet,” — says Halina Karpińska, Director of the Electronic Banking Department at Bank Millennium.

Piotr Skopiński, Director of the Application Development Department, draws attention to another phenomenon - a constantly growing group of "mobile-only" customers, i.e. those for whom mobile application is the only tool for interaction with the bank and financial management. That is why the bank has created the Mobile Platform, whose task is to provide customers with a comprehensive offer and services as well as the best mobile experience.

“Bank Millennium's mobile application is an advanced technological platform. Thanks to its modular architecture, the latest technologies and innovative solutions from the Bank and its partners, it provides a solid technological foundation that enables the dynamic development of mobile banking. Research confirms that the security and reliability of the application are invariably crucial for customers, which is why we focus on its regular testing, updating and modern technologies. The agile development process helps us a lot in this,” — explains Piotr Skopiński.

In the "Mobile Portrait of a Pole" survey, respondents declare that they most often log in to the mobile application to check their account balance (82 per cent), make a transfer (78 per cent), view transaction history (71 per cent), pay for purchases with a BLIK code (70 per cent) and make a BLIK transfer to a phone (63 per cent). A significant group of respondents also use mobile authorization (confirming operations in a mobile application) – 58 per cent declare so, and 52 per cent confirm their identity on other services by logging in to the bank. Respondents in the application also perform typical activities directly related to their finances, i.e. transfer money to savings accounts (42 per cent), pay loan or credit instalments (27 per cent), set up a standing order (22 per cent), open a deposit or savings account - 20 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively.

The survey participants were also asked what additional functionalities of the bank's mobile application they use at least from time to time. It turns out that they most often use it to handle official matters (28 per cent), top up their prepaid phone (23 per cent) and take advantage of discounts or refunds for purchases in online stores (22 per cent). Every fifth respondent declares buying public transport tickets or cinema tickets, 18 per cent of respondents pay for parking in a banking application, and 17 per cent book a hotel or order a taxi. The respondents also point to buying insurance (14 per cent) and paying for motorway tolls (13 per cent).

Opinions are divided as to whether the currently offered range of additional services in banking applications is sufficient. 29% of respondents believe that it is just right, 25% would like banks to offer even more functionalities, and 30% are indifferent. On the other hand, one in six respondents believes that a banking application should focus only on financial matters, and additional functionalities are not needed in it.

The "Mobile Portrait of a Pole" survey also shows that 25 per cent of the Poles surveyed do not use their bank's mobile application. When asked about the reasons, they most often indicated that they do not have such a need (40 per cent), are concerned about the security of applications (38 per cent), limit the number of applications installed on the phone (26 per cent), or try to limit the use of the phone (12 per cent). 7% of respondents indicated that the bank's application does not work on the phone, and 4% prefer to deal with financial matters in a different way because they cannot use the mobile application well.

The "Mobile Portrait of a Pole" survey was carried out on 25-29 October 2024 by the Ariadna Poland’s Research Panel commissioned by the Public Relations team of Bank Millennium on a representative sample of 1068 people using the CAWI method.

See also:

• Mobile Portrait of a Pole - shopping and payments
• Mobile Portrait of a Pole - mobile phone

More information on: www.bankmillennium.pl