SMS Banking

[Milo]

Money via mobile: The M-Pesa revolution

Afghanistan is one of a number of developing countries whose economies are currently being reshaped by mobile money - the ability to send payments by text message.
The ubiquitous kiosks that sell prepaid mobile airtime effectively function like bank branches: you deposit cash, and the agent sends you an SMS adding that amount to your balance.
Or you send the agent an SMS, and she gives you cash.
And you can text some of your balance to anyone else.

If you are plugged into the financial system, it is easy to take for granted that paying your utility bill does not require wasting hours trekking to an office and standing in a queue, or that you have a safer place to accumulate savings than under the mattress.
About two billion people are still outside the system, though the number is falling fast - driven largely by mobile money.

By 2014, mobile money was in 60% of developing-country markets.
Some, such as Afghanistan, have embraced it quickly - but it has not even reached some others.
Nor do most developed-country customers have the option of sending money by SMS, even though it is simpler than a banking app.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38667475

I will keep an eye out for something like this to get traction in Canada.

[Doc]

Money via mobile: The M-Pesa revolution

Afghanistan is one of a number of developing countries whose economies are currently being reshaped by mobile money - the ability to send payments by text message.
The ubiquitous kiosks that sell prepaid mobile airtime effectively function like bank branches: you deposit cash, and the agent sends you an SMS adding that amount to your balance.
Or you send the agent an SMS, and she gives you cash.
And you can text some of your balance to anyone else.

If you are plugged into the financial system, it is easy to take for granted that paying your utility bill does not require wasting hours trekking to an office and standing in a queue, or that you have a safer place to accumulate savings than under the mattress.
About two billion people are still outside the system, though the number is falling fast - driven largely by mobile money.

By 2014, mobile money was in 60% of developing-country markets.
Some, such as Afghanistan, have embraced it quickly - but it has not even reached some others.
Nor do most developed-country customers have the option of sending money by SMS, even though it is simpler than a banking app.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38667475

I will keep an eye out for something like this to get traction in Canada.

That is really interesting Milo. Though without any thing on paper I am wondering how secure it really is.

[lzzrdgrrl]

In a low trust marketplace with a rapidly depleting currency, security is worthless. You need speed and accessibility.......

[SteveFoerster]

All this is why developing countries are particularly fertile ground for Bitcoin.

[dagbay]

All this is why developing countries are particularly fertile ground for Bitcoin.

I'm not quite sure how Bitcoin or its equivalents are any different from monopoly money or the USD. Money has value only if there is trust involved by both sides of a trade. The acceptor must have a solid belief that the value of the notes he is taking in exchange for his goods would be able to buy some other goods of same current value at a later date. In essence without that element of trust any IOU form has no value and will fail eventually. The sharp variations in the value of any currency form do not lend it any measure of trust.

[SteveFoerster]

All this is why developing countries are particularly fertile ground for Bitcoin.

I'm not quite sure how Bitcoin or its equivalents are any different from monopoly money or the USD. Money has value only if there is trust involved by both sides of a trade. The acceptor must have a solid belief that the value of the notes he is taking in exchange for his goods would be able to buy some other goods of same current value at a later date. In essence without that element of trust any IOU form has no value and will fail eventually. The sharp variations in the value of any currency form do not lend it any measure of trust.

Enough people seem to think so that a single bitcoin is now selling for more than an ounce of gold.

[dagbay]

Enough people seem to think so that a single bitcoin is now selling for more than an ounce of gold.

Nothing new there people believe in stranger things ...