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Mobile banking could ignite smartwatch sales

10 million people worldwide will access banking services via smartwatches by 2017, according to a study by analyst Juniper Research. That number will rise to more than 100 million by 2010, the company predicts.

The study, Worldwide Digital Banking: Mobile, Online & Wearable 2015-2020, found that the use of smartwatches to access banking information services has been steadily gaining traction over the past 12 months.

A number of global banks have launched apps for the wrist, while the launch of Apple Watch in April 2015 further accelerated the demand for wearable banking apps.

Juniper Research believes that banking on smartwatches will move from a niche technology to a mainstream service in the coming two years. “It is perceived by many as a gimmick at present,” the company says.

Juniper believes that while wearables, including smartwatches and glasses, are not suited for conducting complicated financial instructions, wrist based wearables will become a key device for secure and authenticated transactions.

“Digital banking has experienced a substantial progression towards personalised computing. We do believe that, keeping pace with technology evolution, wearable banking will witness a faster adoption rate than mobile banking especially amongst millennials”, added research author Nitin Bhas.

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