E-commerce features are increasingly
being built into software and e-banking
is following: even entry-level accounting
systems now automate links with bank
accounts. Consumers and businesses
are exploiting pre-paid smart cards and
mobile phones as ‘electronic wallets’
using services such as Barclays (Pingit)
and the start-up Square. Affordable
access to mobile phones has enabled
new players to introduce m-banking
services in developing economies.
Alternative online payment platforms
are using virtual currencies such as
Bitcoin and the Linden Dollar, and to
peer-to-peer (P2P) lending sites such as
Funding Circle and Zopa are increasing
routes to finance. Not all emerging
‘financial services’ are regulated:
governments have been slow to act.