Would You Bank With Apple?

-

Apple fans can be a little crazy in their devotion to anything with an “i” tacked onto the front of it, but a new survey shows just how far that cult-like following stretches: Nearly half of people who use Apple devices would be willing to trust the computer giant with their savings. In a survey of more than 5,000 consumers in the U.S. and U.K. conducted by marketing consulting company KAE and research and survey company Toluna, 10% of respondents said they would bank with Apple. But when that field of consumers was narrowed to include people who already own Apple products, that number shot up to 43%.

These respondents are a tech-savvy bunch: more than 80% say they already bank online, and 62% use mobile banking. Two-thirds said they would patronize a hypothetical “iBank” because they trust the brand, and more than half said they think an iBank would be user-friendly with reliable service.

Of course, Apple hasn’t given any indication it plans to enter financial services — and it’s probably not likely to in the near future — but the idea isn’t as strange as it sounds at first. After all, even Steve Jobs probably couldn’t have predicted that his computer company would become a huge player in digital music. And financial services isn’t all that much of a stretch for a tech company: Google, which started out as a mere search engine, has been trying for some time now to gain traction for a mobile wallet platform on its Android devices.

Other banks would need to watch their backs if Apple moves in on their turf. “This research tells us Apple customers perceive a fit where at first glance we would assume the brand could not travel,” KAE chief commercial officer Lee Powney said in a statement. If Apple ever did decide to reinvent itself once more and become a financial services provider, traditional banks would find themselves facing a formidable competitor.

MoneyLand

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Huge Japan Quake Cracked Open Seafloor

-
The March 2011 megaquake off the coast of Japan opened up fissures as wide as 6 feet (3 meters) in the seafloor, a new study finds. The fissures now scar the seafloor where peaceful clam beds once lay, according to Takeshi Tsuji, a researcher at Kyoto University in Japan . Along with seismic studies, the fissures, revealed by manned submersible vehicles that investigated the seafloor after the quake, show how the crust around the quake's epicenter expanded and cracked.
Read more

Index for a million documents on Polish Jewry to go online

-
Researchers of Polish Jewry are set to gain online access to more than 1 million new documents following an agreement signed by the Polish State Archives. Under the agreement signed last week, Jewish Records Indexing-Poland will receive indices to the documents from the Polish archives authority and place them on the website of the online database within one year, a JRI-Poland statement read.
Read more

A lot of the bread in the US will no longer be kosher

-
The largest baking company in the United States will be removing kosher certification from nearly all of its bread and rolls. Bimbo Bakeries USA confirmed to JTA that it will be removing the certification. The company produces brands including Arnold, Sara Lee, Stroehmann, Freihofer’s and others. Two of its major brands, Entenmann’s and Thomas, will remain certified kosher. So, kosher eaters, your crumb doughnuts and English muffins are still safe. A couple of rye breads also will retain their certifications. “Removing the kosher certification from some of our products was strictly a business-process decision to enable more efficient operations, and it was one we did not make lightly,” Bimbo said in a statement. “Thomas’ and Entenmann’s products as well as Arnold’s and Levy’s Rye Breads will remain kosher-certified. It is important to note that we have heard our consumers’ concerns and are working with kosher certification organizations and discussing alternative solutions.” The c
Read more