Banks Go Online To Become Relevant Again

Internet technology is making local banks irrelevant. On the other hand, online banking is becoming very relevant with new banking services such as phishing scam protection and bill pay services. I thought for a while banks, as we know them, would become obsolete because of prepaid debit cards and online money transfer. This is no longer the case because of the need for phishing scam protection and online bill pay.

Online Bill Pay. Most banks are offering online bill pay, but they are continuing to improve services. Banks such as U.S. Bank are now offering same day or next day payments, alerts for bills that are coming due. See finextra posting: U.S. Bank upgrades e-banking service for more information on U.S. Bank bill payment services. Other banks are offering not just online bill payment, but also payment by mail for merchants and service providers that are not online.

Phishing Scam Protection. Just like in the old days we kept our money in a bank to protect our money from thieves. Now banks are doing the same for online thieves who attempt to use our personal information to withdrawal money and open new credit card accounts. See our posting More Banks To Protect Against Phishing Scams for more details.