This is a report I’ve been meaning to write for a few months, but it kept getting pushed back for more pressing (Growing Deposits in the Digital Age) or timely (Year-end Wrap and Forecast) reports.

But a few days ago, we put the finishing touches on the latest Online Banking Report. It will be mailed to subscribers by the end of this week. It’s also available online here. There’s no charge for current subscribers; others may access it immediately for US$495.

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Mobile Banking 2.0: iPhone Edition
How to build a smartphone app even
your CFO will love

In the report (press release), we outline the reasons why every financial institution should consider an iPhone app, even if it’s just a simple surcharge-free-ATM/branch finder like 1st Mariner Bank (iTunes link; see note 1) or a one-screen interface to your mobile website, essentially what Bank of America started with last year. Being on the iPhone is like having a website in 1995. Just by being there, even if it’s crappy, you are ahead of the curve. And for the rest of time, you can brag that you were an early adopter of all things mobile.

And the icing on the cake, you get to slap Apple iPhone pictures all over your website. Baltimore, MD-based 1st Mariner, a bank that doesn’t appear to even support basic mobile banking (note 2) has the most iPhone-ish website in the land (see screenshots below).

The report also looks at:

• Mobile banking application market (Apple’s App Store, RIM’s Blackberry App World, and Google’s Android Market)
• Mobile banking forecast (U.S.)
• 33 features to consider for your mobile banking app
• Leveraging iPhone hype to increase interest in financial products and services
• Legal issues in mobile banking from our guest columnists at Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel

1st Mariner Bank homepage (16 March 2009)
Note: Nice job with the St. Patty’s day theme too!

1st Mariner iPhone landing page (16 March 2009)

Notes:
1. The 1st Mariner app, built by PointAbout, identifies the nearest of 16,000 surcharge-free MoneyPass ATMs. It also features other integrated apps for local weather, lowest gasoline prices, accident alerts, traffic (powered by MapQuest), grocery stores, and Zagat restaurant listings (but not reviews or ratings).
2. Ironically, if you navigate to the bank’s website on your iPhone, you cannot even see its iPhone homepage graphic (shown above) because the graphic is Flash-based which is not supported by the iPhone’s Safari browser