Small to midsize billers expect online banking, their Web site, and email to be the fastest growing bill payment channels in the next 24 months. Email tops out mobile phone in billers' growth expectations.

Boston, MA, October 3, 2007 – A new report from Aite Group, LLC reveals that small to midsize billers are facing significant proliferation of bill payment and presentment channels and payment methods, in a way that mimics the situation faced by large billers. Based on a survey conducted in July 2007 of 200 U.S. billers, including utilities, insurance carriers, hospitals, telecom carriers, property management firms, mortgage firms and cable/TV companies, Aite Group examines where small to midsize billers expect to see expansion and decline in their bill payment and presentment operations in the next 24 months.

According to the report, large swaths of the biller community remain under-equipped in terms of bill payment channels, often lacking a transactional Web site or being unable to receive online banking bill payments. However, among the survey participants, nearly half expect to see strong growth in online banking (45%) and biller Web site (39%) growth in the next 24 months. Billers expect the evolution of their bill presentment channels to evolve in sync with their bill payment channels. Of the total respondents, 41% expect bill presentment volumes through online banking to grow strongly to very strongly in the next 24 months, followed by billers' Web sites (37%), and email (33%).

"Banks should not underestimate the appeal of email bill payment to billers and the risk of competition with their consolidator service," says Gwenn Bézard, research director at Aite Group and author of this report. "In addition to the mobile phone, banks should evaluate integrating an email bill payment and presentment solution of their own into their online bill payment service."

This 28-page Impact Report contains 20 figures. Clients of Aite Group's Retail Banking Service can download the report by clicking on the icon to the right

Related Aite Group Research:

• Online Banking Optimization: A Survey
• Online Bill Payments: Chasing the Next Big Thing
• Walk-in Bill Payments: The Prepaid Storm
• Bill Payments: A Biller Survey

To purchase this report or
for additional information,
please contact:
Aite Group Sales
Tel: +1.617.338.6050
sales@aitegroup.com