Text Banking

There may be something good to come out of Haiti. Of the hundreds of millions of dollars committed to disaster relief in haiti, at least $31 million came in through text messages on mobile phones. Prominent financial institutions took notice of how willing Americans are to transfer money through their cell phones.

Wells Fargo just announced this month it’s offering all customers the ability to check their account information, credit card balances and paycheck deposits via text message. Analysts predict text banking will quickly grow in popularity, allowing users to transfer cash to friends, buy a pizza or pay their rent with just a simple text.

One person following the emerging trend is Sam Dupont, a global mobile technology policy analyst for the Washington-based think tank NDN, and author of the blog Global Mobile.

NDN: Text to Haiti - Precursor to Mobile Banking?

MarketWatch: Wells Fargo Extends Text Banking to All Customers

(Photo by Wonderlane via Flickr/CreativeCommons)