Even before the holidays, the banking expansion of telecoms was treated as exotic market, but now – in autumn 2014 – accounts with mobile operators are tempting customers just like in traditional banks. Three players on this banking and telephone market did not strive to invent gunpowder and simply took advantage of proven solutions.

Good Finance Bank has prepared banking infrastructure for Good Finance; Orange used mBank’s services, and F-Mobile used the former Allech (Allech Bank).

Selling financial services

It is hard to resist the impression that the idea of ​​telephone banking came from the desire to create a new channel for selling financial services using the mobile, smartphone revolution.

Financial offers of telecoms do not differ much from those of ordinary internet banks. However, they have a great market advantage – millions of active customers, ready to switch to smartphones to use the bank on the phone.

Payment card

What personal accounts do telecoms propose? Of course, free accounts. RORs in the offer of Good Finance Bank, Orange Finanse and T-Mobile Financial Services are run for “zero”, however – just like in ordinary banks – the devil is in the details written in small print. It is supposed to be free, but for a payment card or withdrawals from some ATMs you have to throw out a few dollars. Only T-Mobile has waived such fees.

Offered money back programs

All three telecommunications banks offered money back programs to their accounts , obviously related to the use of promoted services. Rangeloc and F-Mobile promote modern NFC payments, and Good Finance returns cash for every USD 500 spent with a debit card.

What is the future of financial services proposed by telecoms? It is hard to expect that they will conquer the banking services market, but they will certainly complement it – especially in the fast-growing mobile banking segment. Apparently, over 3 million Polish smartphone users have set up mobile accounts in various banks …