Online banking

IBM research has revealed that rather than turning people away from branch banking, the new channels have simply 'raised the bar on customers' expectations'. It reckons that customers still want a branch to visit because of 'trust' and that they still prefer to deal with people face to face.

Account aggregation: the future
But Internet banking is here to stay and it is set to become an all-encompassing one-stop financial shop with the development of account aggregation.

Account aggregation allows consumers to view all their financial dealings on one website. The provider will collate information on bank accounts credit cards, mortgages, Isas, Peps, life policies and pension plans - even loyalty points, utility bills and Air Miles - and display them on a single screen. The benefits are obvious: rather than remember endless passwords, memorable dates and pin numbers, you only need to go through one security check to get an instant, up-to-date view of your finances.

Not surprisingly it originates from America, but British providers are keen to start signing up savers and investors. Citibank and Egg are two banks that have recently entered the fray, although the take-up has been slow so far.

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