Smart Communications has partnered with banks to offer various mobile banking services.  Recently, Smart launched with the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) a new service that will allow bank clients who are also Smart subscribers to do a wide range of bank transactions through their mobile phones.  The product called BPI-Smart Full-Mobile Banking is a huge upgrade for BPI clients who are Smart subscribers since balance inquiry transaction was previously the only function that can be used through the key-based mobile banking facilities. Now, they cannot only balance inquiry but also do fund transfers, bill payments, Smart prepaid airtime reloading and Smart Money reloading.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) and Smart president and CEO Napoleon Nazareno said they see bright prospects for mobile commerce in the Philippines.  “As the country’s leading telco, we have adopted the fundamental strategy of providing relevant communication solutions and mobile security infrastructure to our partner banks. We are confident that this partnership with BPI, the country’s pioneer in electronic banking, will result in an expanded, more secure, and more convenient mobile banking experience for millions of Smart and BPI customers,” Nazareno said.

BPI president and CEO Aurelio Montinola III pointed out that it is really part of BPI’s commitment to take advantage of alternative channels to make banking more convenient to their clients, adding that the menu-driven BPI-Smart Full-Mobile Banking is banking made easy.

Montinola said that regardless of the telco provider of their clients, BPI wants to give its clients the capacity to do mobile banking. “We want to take advantage of alternative channels to make banking more convenient to our clients. We do not want to confine them to branch banking,” he said, adding the bank is dealing with both Smart and Globe Telecom to expand their mobile banking.

BPI has more than three million BPI, BPI Family Savings and BPI Direct customers who can use mobile banking for both financial and non-financial transactions.

Meanwhile, of the 39 million Smart subscribers, around 7.5 million are with Smart Money while one million are engaged in mobile banking. Smart currently has tie-ups with 21 banks which are involved in mobile banking.

BPI senior vice president and head of overseas banking and channel services Teresita Tan explained that it is like having the bank in one’s cellphone. “With your Smart SIM, you will be able to access your BPI accounts 24 x 7, wherever you are, whenever you want, even when you are on the go,” she said.

To enroll for mobile banking, clients must have at least one ATM-based BPI deposit account. BPI credit cards will be immediately tagged when ATM-based deposit account is applied.

Smart Communications, Inc. has also teamed up with Banco de Oro Unibank (BDO), the country’s largest local bank in terms of assets, loans and deposits, to launch an enhancement of their electronic banking partnership--the ability to purchase electronic load for Smart Buddy and Talk ‘N Text accounts anytime, anywhere, via BDO ATMs, phone banking, and internet banking.

This complements the earlier engagements with BDO, foremost of which is mobile banking, which allows SMART subscribers to perform BDO account inquiries, fund transfers, airtime purchases and Smart Money reloading, via a few clicks on the SIM-based mobile commerce menu of SMART. BDO is also SMART’s first issuer bank for Smart Money--the world’s first reloadable payment card linked to a mobile phone with a SMART SIM.

“As the country’s leading telco, our job is to provide the communications infrastructure that will enable the banking industry to offer new, innovative services to their customers,” said Jojo M. Malolos, Smart Financial Services Group Head. “The enhancements of our partnership with BDO, will enable us to provide an expanded and more robust mobile banking experience to the increasingly mobile Filipino,” Malolos added.

“BDO is pleased to collaborate with SMART to provide more and better opportunities to enhance our services to our customers. BDO’s extensive network combined with Smart’s advanced mobile commerce technology will help us provide our customers with faster, more convenient and more secure ways of managing their banking requirements,” said BDO SVP Ismael G. Estela, Jr., Group Head for Transaction Banking.

Smart has been actively promoting mobile commerce services in the Philippines since 2000. These services include the award-winning Smart Money, the world’s first electronic wallet card linked to a mobile phone.  It won the 2001 3GSM Award for “Most Innovative GSM Wireless Service for Customers.  SMART has likewise developed a global financial and telecommunications services hub model called the Smart Financial Services Hub (“SFSH”), based on the features and capabilities of its Smart Money electronic financial services platform.

A listed entity at the Philippine Stock Exchange, BDO is the largest local bank in terms of assets, loans and deposits and ranked third in terms of capital, as of the end of the first quarter 2009. Notwithstanding the prevailing tough economic environment, the Bank keeps an optimistic outlook for the rest of the year, targeting a full-year profit of P5.5 billion.

Based on Press Releases of Smart