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IBM, Monitise partner to boost mobile payment solutions

Big Blue and Monitise have inked a deal to expand in the cloud-based mobile solutions field.
Written by Charlie Osborne, Contributing Writer
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IBM and Monitise have expanded a partnership designed to deliver cloud-based mobile solutions for the financial services industry.

As the adoption of mobile technology continues to expand, consumers are demanding mobile solutions for core services, and the financial industry needs to keep up. Announced on Monday, IBM and Monitise said the expanded global alliance will help banks and financial institutions fully embrace mobile channels to better engage with customers and improve their services.

IBM says that mobile technology has "forever changed the way customers engage with banks and retailers," and devices such as smartphones and tablets offer "multiple opportunities for banks to capitalize on this growth via mobile money services."

The alliance will bring together the IBM MobileFirst portfolio and Monitise's mobile banking and payments capabilities, granting financial institutions access to data analytics, spearheaded globally as an IBM Global Business Services' initiative. Data analytics will let banks offer consumers targeted services including location-based offerings, and financial institutions will also be assisted in creating new digital and mobile money services "while reducing costs and driving new revenue streams."

In addition, the two companies plan to collaborate with IBM Ready Apps, a suite of industry-specific apps that can easily be configured and deployed in a wide range of businesses. Monitise plans to move its production hosting and cloud requirements to IBM.

Alastair Lukies, Chief Executive of Monitise commented:

Mobile is increasingly becoming the primary way for us to bank, pay and buy. Central to our strategy and collaborations is a drive to enable the businesses we work with to adopt solutions that help them engage more effectively with existing customers and unlock new commercial opportunities. At a time when money is becoming more digitized, this strategic alliance with IBM will support financial institutions across the world in developing effective cloud-based strategies that make a real difference to consumers’ lives.

The announcement follows news that IBM and Apple have forged a pact to develop enterprise applications on iOS. The deal will see the firms develop over 100 industry-specific apps including device management, security, analytics and mobile integration.

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