Mobile Financial Services in Europe: Telco Service Portfolios and Positioning Strategies

Mobile Financial Services in Europe: Telco Service Portfolios and Positioning Strategies

Summary

Mobile Financial Services (MFS) adoption in Europe has grown rapidly and telcos have started expanding services to compete in the market.m-wallet, m-banking, and m-commerce services have prospered in Europe due to the proliferation of mobile applications and relatively high smartphone penetration. In addition to European banks, retail firms, and technology companies driving MFS growth in Europe, telcos have also been gaining a foothold in the market. Telcos often enter the MFS market by offering m-wallet solutions. Overthe past two years, several European telcos have developed their MFS through white-labeling, partnerships, or by developing their own banking institutions.

Despite telcos’ investment in MFS, most offers have not reached significant scale in Europe. Most of the telco-led MFS, especially basic MFS such as mobile wallet and payment services are still in their infancy in Europe, particularly in high-income countries due to widespread use for traditional cash and card payment facilities. Intense competition in the market with tech companies (e.g. Google Pay) and mobile device manufacturers (e.g. Samsung Pay and Apple Pay) offering their own MFS solutions, is also challenging a number of telcos' expansion in the European MFS market.

Despite a number of existing challenges, European telcos are exploring new opportunities and expanding their MFS portfolio with services like savings, credit, insurance, and international remittances, in partnership with local financial institutions. Orange France, for example, partnered with GroupamaBanque to offer bank account, credit and debit cards, mobile payment options, and banking insurance. In the banking services segment, there are only a few European telcos that offer a diverse range of insurance services.

"Mobile Financial Services in Europe: Telco Service Portfolios and Positioning Strategies", a new Telecom Insider report, provides an executive-level overview of the mobile financial services (MFS) market in Europe. It delivers quantitative and qualitative insights into the mobile market, analyzing key trends and growth drivers in the region.

It provides in-depth analysis of the following:

• Mobile Financial Services: Portfolio: This section provides an overview of the core portfolio of mobile network operators' mobile financial services.


• MFS in Europe: This section looks at the recent development and the current state of mobile financial services in Europe, while also providing a closer look at the differences and similarities of mobile person-to-person payments.


• Case studies: This section takes a deep dive into two case studies from Europe giving insight into mobile network operators' portfolios, strategies, positioning, and ambitions.


• Key findings: A summary of key findings and growth opportunities for the European MFS market.

Scope

• The uptake of MNO-led MFS differ significantly between the CEE and WE, partly due to differences in the banked population.


• Key market drivers enabling telcos to capture market opportunities includes high rate of mobile services as well as smartphone penetration.


• In order to provide a fuller and more advanced range of mobile financial services, operators across the region are both creating in-house solutions and partnering with more traditional financial players.

Reasons to Buy

• Offers a comprehensive and detailed understanding of mobile financial services (MFS) portfolios and positioning in European markets.


• The report investigates MFS trends, milestones and competitive attributes, looking in particular at the various drivers and inhibitors in Europe.


• To study Europe’s most competitive telcos' MFS provisions, in order to inform strategic decision-making.


• The report discusses commercial and technical developments in the wider mobile money market and what these developments might mean for the future.