comScore Inc., a provider of data, analytics and on-demand software solutions for the digital business world, today released an analysis of mobile financial services usage in the U.S. which showed that 32.5 million Americans accessed mobile banking information on their devices at the end of Q2 2011 in June, representing 13.9 percent of all mobile users.

The study also revealed that 12.7 million mobile users reported using banking apps, showing a notable increase of 45 percent from Q4 2010.

"The investments in mobile made by financial services institutions, along with the continued growth in smartphone adoption, have had a truly positive effect on the use of mobile financial services," said Sarah Lenart, comScore vice president for Marketing Solutions. "New apps and mobile-enhanced sites have made it easier for customers to seek out financial information using mobile devices. With tablets and other web-enabled connected devices gaining popularity in addition to smartphones, financial service institutions are poised for additional growth in mobile access."

Nearly 14 percent of the total U.S. mobile audience (32.5 million users) accessed mobile banking services in June 2011, up 21 percent from Q4 2010. Mobile credit card services saw an even greater increase, with 18.4 million mobile users accessing credit card information, up 23 percent from December 2010.

With the steady growth in smartphone adoption over the past year, the use of apps to access mobile financial information has grown as well. In particular, mobile banking and credit card app usage have seen sizeable increases. According to the report, 12.7 million mobile users reported having used a banking app in June (up 45 percent from Q4 2010), while 6.0 million users used a credit card app (up 43 percent).

An analysis of credit card customers' engagement with various account channels shows users reporting more frequent access through mobile channels than fixed-line computers in Q2 2011. Sixty-two percent of credit card customers reported using an app to visit a bank's website at least once a week, and 52 percent reported checking in with the same frequency via a mobile browser. In comparison, only 34 percent of users responded checking into their accounts with the same frequency from a fixed-line computer.

"While mobile channels have not reached the same penetration that traditional online channels have for the use of financial services, it is interesting to note that mobile users access their credit card accounts on a more frequent basis," Lenart said. "Digitally-savvy customers have begun to use mobile and other connected devices such as tablets to engage in online activities that once used to be limited to the computer and are doing so more frequently because of the portability and convenience offered by these devices."

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