Bank of America, the nation's largest bank with $680 billion of assets and 30 million customers this week announced a wireless component for its 2.4 million online banking customers.
Reflecting a trend instigated by online banking and bill-paying services, a Bank of America official said the wireless component was added to satisfy customer demand for banking and brokerage services "on one site and anywhere they are," said Linda Mueller, a BofA vice president. The bank will also be redesigning many of its branches -- 20 in the first phase -- to accommodate BofA customers who want services at an all-in-one brick-and-mortar location, said Mueller. Wireless is part of the larger Bank of America goal to allow its customers to see the same information wherever they access it.
"We want to link all of our channels and provide a consistent experience and memory," said Mueller.
Bank of America joins a long list of banks including CitiBank, Chase Manhattan, Wachovia, and other financial services companies deploying online and now wireless channels for customer access in a staged series of rollouts.
The BofA wireless component will be rolled out during the next 18 months with the first deployment being offered to its private banking customers in Dallas, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. Private banking customers is an industry term for individuals with $1 million or more in investable assets excluding primary residence.
In its first stage customers will be able to access account and investment information, and transfer funds between accounts on most wireless devices, including cellular phones using the Sprint PCS, AT&T and Verizon wireless networks, and Palm V platform.
The company plans to expand its wireless services to include all brokerage services.
Bank of America is averaging 125,000 new online customers per month.
The bank will use 724 Solutions, based in Toronto, Canada, to create its wireless channel. 724 specializes in building the wireless infrastructure for financial services companies and is also working with Wachovia, Harris, and CityBank as well as banks in Europe, Mexico, and Latin America.