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Mobile wallets address two pain points for ATM operators

October 31, 2013 by Kevin Christensen — Vice President, Audit, SHAZAM

It's no secret that ATM transactions have been waning for several years. As as result, today's operators are challenged to find more ways to: a) increase the value of the ATM in the everyday financial lives of consumers; and b) control costs to offset the decline in revenue.

Mobile wallets might be a solution to both challenges.

Smartphone apps that allow consumers to withdraw cash from the ATM certainly add value as consumers are depending on their mobile banking apps for more everyday financial transactions.

As Diebold's chief innovation officer put it in a recent news release, mobile wallets create something consumers crave — "a bridge from digital currency to physical cash."

The company's solution allows consumers to set up cash withdraws before they even arrive at a machine. The app generates a QR code, which the consumer scans at the ATM to authenticate the transaction.

Because many of these apps are white-label, the financial institution stays front-and-center, providing a high-profile innovation for its first-adopter customers.

From a security standpoint, mobile wallets completely remove the card (and therefore any chance of skimming) from the ATM transaction equation.

Among the major costs confronted by ATM operators and their FI partners is fraud. And among the major fraud attempts, skimming continues to be the most painful to operators' bottom lines.

Inexpensive for criminals to pull off, skimming schemes employ low-cost, high-return tactics — in fact, the very same benefits ATM operators are chasing.

For FIs wondering about the "why" of mobile wallets, the ATM connection offers two more reasons.

Read more about mobile banking.