Nov.-Dec. 2000

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Online Banking Catching on in Canada

The Montreal Gazette 

Thursday 14 December 2000

   While most Canadians continue to use bank branches, 20 per cent have signed up for Internet banking, double the number a year ago, a survey suggests. And those who registered for Internet service use it frequently. About 59 per cent reported clicking on their account at least once a week while 77 per cent said they usually bank online at least once a month. Those are some of the findings in the annual report on banking services conducted by Canadian Facts, a division of marketing research firm CF Group Inc.  “Compared to other methods of banking, Internet banking has seen the biggest jump in usage over the past year,” Rhonda Grunier, senior research director of Canadian Facts, said in a statement. “And it will continue to increase: 16 per cent of Canadians who are not signed up for Internet banking say they are very or fairly likely to register for this service within the next six months.” Among those not planning to sign up with their financial institution for online banking, the main reason cited was a lack of a computer and/or an Internet connection, mentioned by 32 per cent of those not planning to register.

   Security is another concern and was mentioned by 20 per cent of all non-registrants but by 33 per cent of those with Internet access at home. In total, 64 per cent of those surveyed said they have an Internet connection at home or at work, up from 54 per cent in 1999. Canadian Facts interviewed 2,003 adults by phone between Oct. 5 and 19. A survey sample this size is considered accurate within 2.2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

   In addition to the Internet, the study looked at how Canadians are making use of other ways to do their banking. For example, automated banking machine usage is widespread, with 76 per cent reporting a transaction within the past month. But it has seen only incremental growth over the past few years. Banking by phone increased over the past year, with 23 per cent reporting a past-month transaction, compared with 19 per cent in 1999. And debit-card payments are also on the rise, with 73 per cent of those polled making at least one debit-card payment in the past month, compared with 65 per cent in 1999. Most Canadians, however, continue to deal with financial institutions at the branch level.