Text message banking makes balance checking easier

New banking systems using mobile phones are helping in the fight against debt, it was claimed this week.

First Direct said that its more recently introduced services such as mobile phone and internet banking were proving popular with customers.

According to the company’s own figures, almost 400,000 of its 1.2 million clients use the text message service, with about 2.6 million messages sent out every month.

Customers can set up alerts for when they become overdrawn or when their salaries are paid, as well as using the service to check their balance.

Spokesman for the company Rob Skinner said that the service helps customers “manage their money a little better”.

“The mobile phone is something which we carry around with us, it’s almost a remote control for our lives”, he added.

However, Mr Skinner maintained that telephone banking remains popular with some First Direct customers, who “still like to speak to a real person at the end of the phone.

“Ultimately it’s up to the customer to choose the method which suits them best.”

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