HALIFAX — More than ever, residents of Atlantic Canada love to bank online, according to a new study by the Canadian Bankers Association.
The bi-annual survey found that 63 per cent of those living in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland reported conducting banking transactions online during the past year, a significant jump of 16 percentage points from 2008 and the highest year-over-year increase in Canada.
In addition, 44 per cent of Atlantic respondents identified online banking as their primary means of conducting financial transactions, higher than any other method of banking.
"Clearly people living in the Atlantic provinces appreciate the ease and convenience of banking online, and the growth in this region over the past decade has been impressive," said Maura Drew-Lytle, director of communications for the Canadian Bankers Association. "In 2000, only six per cent of Atlantic Canadians did most of their banking online while 37 per cent did most of their banking at ABMs. Now all that has changed."
According to the survey, 28 per cent of respondents identified banking at an ABM as their primary means of conducting financial transactions and 20 per cent pointed to in-branch banking.
"While the convenience of online banking appeals to Atlantic Canadians there are also many who appreciate the diverse options available at ABMs and the personal touch that in-branch customer service representatives provide," said Drew-Lytle. "Our research shows that people choose to bank in different ways. This is a competitive business and banks in Canada ensure they can meet the diverse needs of their customers by offering a range of banking options and new technologies to make banking even more convenient."
As technology continues to develop, banks in Canada now offer mobile banking services that allow Canadians to carry out a variety of day-to-day banking transactions through their smart phones. Although this technology is fairly new, Canadians from coast to coast appear enthusiastic about its prospects. When asked about the possibility of conducting banking transactions with a mobile phone in the next two years, 23 per cent of respondents Canada-wide believe it is likely. This number jumped to 54 per cent among BlackBerry owners and 64 per cent among owners of PDAs, including iPhones.
The survey results indicate that those from the Atlantic provinces do indeed appreciate the ease that technology has brought to their banking experience, with 82 per cent reporting that technology has made their personal banking experience more convenient. Atlantic residents' comfort with online banking is also evident when looking at how they make their regular bill payments; 44 per cent identified online payments as their primary choice for paying bills.
