Mobile banking has seen progress in recent years, but it has mostly been based on the networks’ accessibility and willingness to provide the service. However, the flexibility of the iOS has given banks a new way to promote their services wirelessly through applications. Developing applications for Apple’s platforms has become the top priority for most banks while some of the bigger ones such as Citibank and Chase already have functioning applications that let you handle your transactions from your phone. Some pure payment companies such as PayPal have even developed apps that enable you to scan the credit card with the camera and use it to transfer money.
Now, there is a new player in the market and this one appears quite promising and is looking to take on most of the applications already available. The app comes from Simple which looks to modify your banking experience to make it simpler and smoother and the application presents an easy to use front end over the web while it works as a typical debit card. This application is not pertaining to any specific bank but rather it aims to work to get several banks to allow users to register checking accounts with Simple and it issues a Visa debit card that is used to handle the payments. Simple is not going to be a bank but just a customer service that allows ATM withdrawals without any fees on the Allpoint network and it doesn’t show data from several accounts but just the transactions from one.
The reason that Simple has gone for a debit card is to target those users with tight budgets who cannot afford to overdraw. The application shows you “Safe to Spend” fund details and uses all the existing un-reconciled transactions to show the actual availability of money without allowing overdrawing. The iPhone app is quite straightforward and delivers feedback right away and seeks your approval for transactions. Though the app is designed for all iOS devices, it requires at least a functioning cell phone to use it on the iPad or iPod touch. The authorization is done with a PIN rather than a username and password combination which is the norm in the other banking applications. The app is quite easy to use with shortcuts and a clear design and the next version is going to allow depositing via the camera!
