European Banks More Advanced

Small European banks with a focus on added-value service provide the most advanced Internet banking service, according to a study by Bluesky International Marketing.

The study, “Internet Banking in Europe” rated banks in the US and Europe according to how well they use Internet technology to improve customer service relationships, build an international market, increase domestic productivity and enhance marketing campaigns.

Bluesky surveyed 863 Internet retail bank sites across the UK, Ireland, Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain and 1676 sites in the US. Bank ratings ranged from “brochureware” sites to “advanced cyberbanks,” and the study awarded points for the availability of calculators, email, account statements, and the ability to carry out online transactions including bill payment.

The study categorized 476 European bank sites (55 percent) as intermediate and advanced cyberbanks compared to 249 US banks. Germany had the highest number of online bank sites, 533 of the 863 surveyed in Europe.

Bluesky found that France and Spain had six times as many advanced cyberbanks as the UK, even though those countries have half the number of Internet users.

Nearly all of the Internet bank sites in Holland are classified as advanced, 40 percent are available in English as well as Dutch as they use the Internet to expand beyond their domestic borders.