In the wake of the banking crisis, many people have found the trust they once put in banks has somewhat faded.
However, as financial solutions company Think Money reports, recent research indicates that a significant proportion of current Apple customers in the US and UK would consider opening a bank account with the technology giant if it were to start offering them.
The study, carried out by marketing & research consultancy KAE and online poll company Toluna, revealed that 43% of existing Apple customers would consider banking with the company. Overall – including non-Apple customers – 10% of people polled said they’d consider the ‘iBank’ (if that’s what it was called!).
It seems that trust in the brand was the primary reason behind this response – with 66% of people citing Apple’s trustworthiness as the main reason they’d consider banking with the company. Just over 50% of respondents said they thought Apple would provide a reliable service and make their bank account easy to manage.
Apple hasn’t announced any plans to move into banking, but the growing popularity – and sophistication – we’ve seen in mobile banking and smartphone apps recently could help the ‘iBank’ become a reality.
David Rankin, MD of KAE, thinks the move into banking could be a real possibility: “With a proven ability to cross-sell additional products, along with the highest sales per square foot of any retailer and an affluent customer base, it wouldn’t take long for Apple to become one of the most profitable consumer banks in recent times.”
