Why is "search" not in 100% of Mobile Banking Apps?

Online and Mobile Banking is now complicated

When the first online banking solutions were launched, they were simple. Many attribute the first online banking solution to Stanford Federal Credit Union which launched its Internet banking website in 1994. Back then, the functionality (whilst groundbreaking) was limited to:

• Account access: Members could check their account balances, transaction history, and other account information.   

• Transfers: Funds could be transferred between accounts within the credit union.   

• Loan payments: Loan payments could be made directly online.   

• Loan applications: Members could apply for loans online.   

• Interest rates: Current interest rates for various products were available.

• Product information: Information about certificates of deposit, home loans, and other financial products was accessible.

By 1997, the credit union was offering bill payment. And mobile banking was available as early as 2002. Remember, the iPhone launched in 2007.

But things have changed since then. My mobile banking experience has two menus on the main screen. One for Account-related tasks (deposit a check, pay a bill, lock/unlock a card) and one for my Profile (change password, manage alert settings, change communication preferences).

In fact, the Account-related menu is so large that it doesn't fit on a mobile phone screen - I have to scroll to see all the options. Granted, the bank chose to 'simplify' the navigation with icons ... which I'm ok with. But even then, there are a lot of options.

Now, in some respects, this is excellent. I can do more and more of my banking on my phone. And I love that convenience. However, so many of those options are very rarely selected - that I question why they're in the mobile app? Have we created 'bloat' in the design and made it harder to find the things we need?

For instance. My 12 year old son lost his debit card recently. So we cancelled it and ordered a new one. When the new card arrived I was directed to the mobile app to activate it. Which I simply could not find. And I work in software! I know my way around applciations. My wife ended up trying on a desktop computer and found ti straight away.

So it reminded me of an idea I had previously - why haven't banks added "Search" to mobile apps?

The simplicity of search

According to Google - As of 2024, there are approximately 1.1 billion websites on the World Wide Web. We navigate the entire internet every day with 'search'. We've become accustomed to it. Its how we shop on Amazon. Its how we find people on LinkedIn. And yet - when we open our mobile banking apps or online banking, we're forced to navigate through menus to find the things we want to do like Deposit a Check, Make a Payment or Lock a Card.

Why haven't we added a simple search option to mobile banking? (And it doesn't have to be AI Powered search, just search). I could type "Deposit a check" and get taken straight to the screen to do just that. I could type "check" and be presented with options like:

• Deposit A Check

• Stop a Check

• Order a Check Book

• etc.

With navigation to the correct area of the mobile banking app by simply selecting the correct option.

I worked with a colleague on this capability as a prototype mobile banking experience, and it worked beautifully. If I had it today, it would be the default way I would navigate online banking ... just like Google is the default way I navigate the web. But alas 'no'. Banks seem more interested in embedding AI into mobile banking than simply giving us a Search Box to navigate our increasingly complex mobile banking apps.

There may be hope - some banks seem to have realized Search is a smart way to help customers navigate their online banking. This screen shot from Bank of America shows a search bar at the top of the screen. I'm not a BofA customer - so I can't confirm that it helps me navigate the app (as opposed to offering financial advice 🙄) but here's hoping.