Europeans remain wary about using the latest financial technology even if it will make purchasing goods and other monetary transactions more convenient, according to a survey by ING.
The insurance giant’s 7th annual survey on attitudes towards financial technologies revealed that more than half (65%) of Europeans have never tried using fingerprint or voice technology in logging into a mobile banking application.
The poll also showed that they are cautious about the security implications of such innovations, with only just a notch higher than half (52%) of the respondents considering facial recognition technology as being ‘secure.’ The figure for voice recognition was way lower at just 35%. The survey also pointed out that nearly two-thirds (70%) of Europeans still visit a branch to access services from their primary banking provider.
More than half (55%) of the people in the region are not familiar of the concept of data sharing and open banking, an innovation that allows banks and other financial service providers to access a person’s financial information held by another organization as long as there is permission. Another 13% are not sure about the innovation, leaving only nearly a third (32%) confirming their knowledge of it.
Despite concerns about security issues and remaining in control of their finances, and some hesitation in adopting the latest financial technology, consumers still want to be given technology options and want everything to work without hiccups.
These views are reflected in the nearly two-thirds (73%) of Europeans agree that banks and other financial institutions should provide the latest technologies to their customers. Moreover, around 77% of them also believe that banks must work together to make sure the newest payment methods must function everywhere.
ING also found that the percentage of European beginning to engage in mobile banking and other new financial technologies has followed the general bell curve of adoption. Starting with a small number of early adopters who begins using the new tech, the trend will be followed by a significant leap as it enters the mainstream market until some of the new users fall back as the technology reaches the late adopters.
