EXCLUSIVE – Bank of America’s mobile app got a makeover today with a set of new features including a cardless ATM option.
On Wednesday, the bank announced a slew of new features in an effort to enhance the banking experience of its 23 million mobile app users. The cardless ATM option maybe the most interesting of the new add-ons. The feature allows users to initiate an ATM withdrawal directly from their mobile banking app.
“It saves them four steps in the process,” Michelle Moore, head of digital banking at Bank of America, told Bank Innovation “which, even though it doesn’t sound like a lot, saves the customer many minutes of their time.”
The feature is especially useful if one is on the go. Essentially, users can select the amount they want to withdraw through their banking app. When they arrive at the ATM of their choice, they can use their smartphone or debit card, enter their PIN, and the ATM machine will automatically withdraw the amount they requested through their phones.
The user doesn’t need to select a withdrawal option or enter the amount, like they would if they just went up to an ATM without using the feature.
“Mobile banking has becoming extremely important to us,” Moore said. “So we are constantly looking at ways to enhance the experience.” With over 23 million mobile users, the bank expects to see a 10% to 15% increase in this number from year to year, she said.
Just three years ago, the amounts of log-ins per week on mobile v. desktop was evenly split at 40 million log-ins per week. Now mobile has moved up to 80 million, while desktop remains at 40 million. “Clearly this is their preferred method of banking,” Moore said.
It’s not just about mobile banking, but rather the entire digital culture that has become a point of focus for the bank.
“People are not logging out of the BofA app then heading to another banking app, they are going on social media apps like Twitter, or Instagram or Facebook,” she said. “So, we’re essentially competing with this kind of lifestyle. Understanding the value around making the app and the entire digital banking experience more interactive and personalized is key.”
Other features to the mobile app announced today include a personal finance management feature and a mobile dashboard.
The PMF-esque tool, which BofA calls “The Goal-Setting Tool” was developed in partnership with personal finance management platform, Better Money Habits, Moore said. It basically lets users create a personalized savings goals with names, pictures and target amounts, so they can watch their progress along the way and prioritize funds accordingly.
The mobile dashboard lets users to customize their page to reflect features they use most often such as account balances, budgeting tools, FICO Scores, Mobile Alerts, and Zelle etc.
These new features are currently available for Android and will become available for iPhone users by late next Tuesday or September 11.